Strong Enough
by Melodramatic.FruitCup
Summary: Marianne Dixon, the younger half sister of Daryl, is trying to survive the end of the world like everyone else. The siblings rely on each other but will that be enough to overcome what the world throws at them? Their relationship will be tested in ways they couldn't imagine. And can she handle the new person she's becoming?
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: This is my first TWD fanfiction and the first ff I've shared in, I think, 8 years. I'm super nervous about it. I've read over what I've written so many times I'm having difficulty getting a good perspective on it anymore so instead of editing it for the millionth time I thought I'd go ahead and post it.**

Disclaimer: I do not own the Walking Dead.

* * *

 **Chapter One**

She always looked ready to run, muscles tense, eyes constantly wandering around, her body on full alert waiting to spring into action at the first sign of trouble. It was a lifetime of conditioning, a lifetime of shit hitting the fan at a moment's notice. If it wasn't her now deceased dad it was Merle and if it wasn't Merle then God help the person that messed with the Dixons.

Marianne felt the sweat trickle down her neck. The hot Georgian sun beat down on her as she finished cleaning the last of the blood off of their hunting knives. Daryl was busy and Merle sure as hell couldn't be bothered in his state. Marianne frowned. She seemed to always be cleaning up Merle's messes and the end of the world hadn't changed that.

Finished with her task, she looked around camp and watched everyone go about their business. The two blonde sisters, Amy and Andrea, and that boy's mom, Lori, were preparing dinner from the skinned squirrels Daryl had killed close to camp. Hunger made everyone quickly get over their reservations about eating the meat.

The three women burst out laughing and a pang of loneliness hit her but she shook it off. She wasn't lonely. She had Daryl and, for better or worse, Merle. She didn't need to get close to these people. Getting close made her weak. The less people you cared about the better in this new world, but she missed female company so she listened in.

Marianne's hearing was far better than people gave her credit for. Except for Daryl, who'd swear that she had superhuman hearing. 'Like a bat or somethin'.' So it wasn't hard to hear the conversations going on around camp and she heard plenty of complaining about 'those Dixons.'

"Guess who's looking at us?" Amy asked. Marianne glanced away but kept an ear turned towards them.

"Who?" Andrea asked.

"The Dixon sister."

"Her name is Marianne, Amy. I'm sure she'd appreciate you using it. Go on, ask her to join us. She won't bite."

"She certainly looks like she could. "

"Don't be mean."

"I'm not. That's a compliment. I wish I was as badass as her."

"I don't think she has a choice with those brothers of hers." Lori joined in on the conversation. "Imagine having to grow up with them around. It's enough to make you hard."

"Do you think they stop her from trying to get friendly with us?" Amy asked

"I wouldn't be surprised."

Marianne didn't need to hear anymore and decided she didn't need their company, so she stood up and moved to put the knives away. Marianne wasn't a social recluse like Daryl but she also wasn't a social butterfly. There had been a few close friends over the years. _Probably all dead. I only have my brothers now. God help me._ But she didn't think God would help and it didn't matter to her, not being particularly religious.

* * *

A week had passed and she couldn't get rid of the desire to join the other women and it was still the same when she woke up that morning. Even though the sun hadn't finished rising most of the camp was awake. Marianne had always been an early riser but today was little special. For the first time, a group was going into Atlanta instead of Glenn flying solo.

Marianne had mixed feelings about it. On the one hand, a larger group meant a greater risk, but on the other, more people meant more supplies were coming back. Supplies they really needed. Their group was like a plague of locusts consuming everything in sight. Rationing barely helped and in the beginning people didn't take it seriously. She didn't bother to worry too much about it since she was far from in charge. The logistics of the group's survival wasn't her problem. If need be, she'd be out of there along with her brothers. If anyone could survive on their own, it was them.

After satisfying her curiosity about the supply run, she went about her normal routine, which meant Marianne was having a peaceful morning, despite the extra noise, until Merle gave her the news.

"You're crazy and high as a kite. There's no way you're goin' to Atlanta. Unless you want to get yourself killed."

"Nothin' can kill Merle but Merle. And since when did I answer to you, little sis?"

"When you decided to act like a child."

Merle laughed.

"Daryl, back me up." Up to this point, her other brother had been very interested in the dirt under his fingernails. He shrugged.

"He's a grown man. Let him do what he wants."

Marianne scoffed. She should've expected this kind of answer. Why did she even bother in the first place? "Fine. But expect an 'I told you so' when it all goes to hell."

This time Merle scoffed. "You worry too much Annie."

"And you don't worry enough."

Merle ruffled her hair and she pushed his arm away. "You're an ass." Merle just laughed again as he walked to the car that would take him to Atlanta.

She watched the small group drive away and out of the corner of her eye she spotted Daryl shouldering his crossbow with a familiar look on his face.

"Where do you think you're going?"

"Huntin'. Didn't know I needed permission."

She narrowed her eyes. "You were goin' to sneak off without saying goodbye. You can't do that anymore. Besides, I'm comin' with you."

"No you ain't. No point since Merle lost your bow."

"Don't remind me." She took a step closer to him. "I can still track."

Daryl shifted on his feet and repositioned his crossbow before looking away.

"But you want to be by yourself. I get it." She kept the disappointment out of her voice.

Daryl relaxed as much as he was capable of, looking relieved. "Ya always do."

"Be safe. I don't think I can stand Merle without you." As she watched him walk into the woods she almost changed her mind and started after him. She didn't want to be alone.

* * *

It was the first time in camp that both of her brothers were away at the same time. Marianne missed Daryl but she couldn't muster the same feelings for Merle. It was a nice break to not have to worry about his insane plan to steal supplies and sneak away in the dead of night. Thankfully this plan had stalled, but unthankfully it was because he hadn't seen a sober day in weeks. Then there was Dale keeping watch. Marianne wondered if the old man ever slept.

"Marianne?" Her thoughts interrupted, she looked up at Lori who was giving her a reassuring smile. "Would you like to join us?" Lori pointed to the picnic table where Carol was making breakfast for the kids.

"Why?" Marianne narrowed her eyes but Lori didn't back down.

"We thought, with your brothers gone, you might want some company."

Something stirred in her chest. "I know what y'all think about us. About my brothers. I'm not deaf and I'm not stupid. And I don't need your pity." Her raised voice had drawn people's attention. Camp life could be boring so everyone unabashedly listened in, most of them not trying to hide it.

"None of us think you're stupid. I apologize on behalf of everyone if we've offended you. I think we're going to be living with each other for awhile and we just want to be your friend. It'd make things easier for you."

"Who says I want easy?"

"Fair enough, but the offer still stands."

Thoughts raced through Marianne's mind as she struggled to come to a decision, to find a good enough reason to stay away. She couldn't. Lori had made a good point about living together, even if the others annoyed her more often than not.

"Fine." She stood up. "But don't expect me to talk." Lori smiled in triumph and Marianne chose to ignore it so she wouldn't change her mind just to spite the woman.

The day wore on, and despite six people being gone, there wasn't much of a difference in Marianne's day. She still worried about Merle but now with no obligation to immediately intercede because, at the moment, the distance made it physically impossible.

Marianne watched Amy, who was carrying a small red bucket, walk up to the campfire where she and Lori were sitting in companionable silence.

"Any luck?" Lori asked.

"How do we tell if they're poison?" Marianne was surprised Amy had expended time and energy on a task that, for all she knew, was worthless. She didn't know how these people were still alive. Amy dumped the mushrooms into a small metal bowl Lori was holding.

"Uh, there's only one sure way I know of." Lori stared at the mushrooms thoughtfully and picked one out of the bowl, rubbing the dirt off of it with her thumb. Marianne was ready to hit it out of her hand if Lori even contemplated eating it.

"Ask Shane when he gets back?" Amy suggested.

"Yeah, you've got it." Lori rubbed her hand on her jeans and set the bowl on the ground.

"Y'all don't need to ask Shane everything, you know." The two women looked at Marianne. "I'll take a look. The last thing I need is a camp full of people dying from poison mushrooms because a cop said it was okay."

"Thank you." With a gracious smile, Lori handed the bowl of mushrooms to Marianne and then picked up the red bucket Amy had abandoned. "I guess I'll go try my own luck out." She started to walk away, and then paused to look up at the man standing on the RV with a rifle in hand. "Dale, I'm heading out." Marianne watched her turn to look at her son. "Sweetheart, I want you to stay where Dale can see you, okay?"

"Yes, Mom." Marianne heard but couldn't see Carl. For a worried mother living during the apocalypse, she sure did leave other people to watch over him a lot lately.

"You too. Don't wander too far. Stay within shouting distance. And if you see anything, holler. I'll come running." Dale sounded sure of himself, like if anything really did happen he'd be able to make a big difference in the outcome.

"Yes, Mom." Marianne heard Lori say just low enough for Dale not to catch it and smirked at the response. She was getting sick of the men treating all of the women like the children. The last time she checked, they were all adults. Although, Marianne had to admit, the survival instincts and skills of some of these so called adults were questionable at best.

"I have a feeling she won't be coming back with too many berries." Marianne looked into the bowl of mushrooms with distaste. She hated them but would eat them anyways.

"What makes you think that?" Amy looked mildly puzzled.

She shrugged. "Nothin'."

* * *

Marianne was mending one of Daryl's raggedy shirts and instead of secluding herself at her and her brothers' tents she decided to take the task into the middle of camp.

Thunder continued to threaten rain and Dale was tinkering with his RV. "Boy, that hose isn't long for his world, is it?" This wasn't the first time he'd said that.

Marianne looked up at the graying sky, wishing there would be a break in the heat instead of the rise in humidity they were getting. It was one thing to go camping and know air conditioning would be waiting when you got home, but another to be camping knowing that electricity was now well-nigh impossible.

"No sir." Jim said, not sounding seriously interested in the predicament. Marianne wondered what he was thinking about right now. He never looked happy, but she guessed she never did either. There wasn't a whole lot to be happy with, except maybe that they weren't walking corpses.

"Where the hell are we going to find a replacement?"

"It's late. They should've been back by now." Amy suddenly said.

"Worrying won't make it better." Dale briefly looked up from his work at the pacing blonde.

"Hello, base camp!" The radio came to life and Marianne stood up, dropping the shirt in mid stitch. T-Dog's voice crackled through, floating down from the RV to everyone in camp. "Can anybody out there hear me?" Shane, Lori, and Carl came running over to the RV while Dale climbed the ladder as fast as he could.

"Base camp, this is T-Dog. Anybody hear me?" Dale picked up the radio.

"Hello? Hello?" He asked urgently. "Reception's bad on this end. Repeat. Repeat."

"Shane, is that you?" T-Dog instantly responded.

"Is that them?" Lori asked unhelpfully. Dale's hand, index finger pointed, jerked up slightly, signaling Lori to be quiet. Marianne climbed up the RV ladder and stood next to Dale to get an even better chance at hearing through the static.

"We're in some deep shit. We're trapped in the department store."

"He say they're trapped?" Shane asked.

"There are geeks all over the place. Hundreds of 'em. We're surrounded."

Dale fiddled with a dial. "T-Dog, repeat that last. Repeat." But Marianne didn't need T-Dog to repeat anything. She knew exactly what she heard and so did the old man. There was only static and the radio silence that wasn't so silent. Marianne sighed, a sick feeling settling in her stomach. An 'I told you so' wasn't looking so good anymore.

Everyone was quiet as the situation sunk in and thunder rumbled alongside the static.

"He said the department store." Lori spoke first.

"I heard it too," Dale said.

"So did I." Marianne looked down at everyone.

"Shane?" Lori asked.

"No way. We do not go after them. We do no risk the rest of the group. Y'all know that." Shane didn't sound thrilled about it. Marianne knew he was waiting for the backlash. Even though she agreed with Shane, it still didn't stop her from wanting to rescue them. If she did attempt anything it wouldn't be until Daryl came back from hunting. She didn't trust anyone else to not make a mess of a rescue effort.

"So we're just gonna leave her there?" Marianne noted how Amy was only concerned with one person. It wasn't like there were five more that were in danger too.

"Look, Amy, I know that this is not easy—"

"She volunteered to go. To help the rest of us."

"I know, and she knew the risks, right?" Shane was being infinitely more patient with Amy than Marianne could be. "See, if she's trapped, she's gone. So we just have to deal with that. There's nothing we can do."

"She's my sister, you son of a bitch." Amy ran off and Marianne couldn't muster up any feelings of sympathy for the girl. She was too soft and Andrea protected her too much.

Before returning to Daryl's shirt Marianne noticed the desperate look Shane gave Lori, his need for reassurance that he did the right thing. She watched Lori give it to him and that's when she knew for sure that they were far more than friends and then she wondered why they were trying so hard to hide it.

* * *

The drive back to camp had been quiet so far. Everyone was too exhausted to hold a conversation.

"Best not to dwell on it." Morales broke the silence. "Merle got left behind." Rick glanced over at him.

"Nobody's gonna be sad he didn't come back…except, maybe Daryl."

"Daryl?" Rick asked.

"His brother…And probably Marianne." Morales looked out the window, avoiding Rick's stare.

"Marianne?"

"His sister."

* * *

 **A/N: Reviews would be amazing. I'd really love to get some feedback and know if this is any good at all. I have first drafts of the next few chapters and I'm almost done writing for Season 1 and I think Season 2 will be even better. I hope y'all stick around.**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hey everyone! Thank you so much for the follows and favs and a thank you to SinfulRoses for my first review. I'm glad you like it and I'm definitely planning on sticking with this story. I've already started writing for Season 2. I'm going to try to keep ahead a few chapters just in case anything happens where I can't write and I'll still have something to post.**

Disclaimer: I don't own the Walking Dead.

* * *

 **Chapter Two**

Marianne heard it first, the whooping of a car alarm echoing in the distance. It meant someone was coming and in a stolen car, no less, but was it their people? What if they were strangers? Would they need to protect themselves?

She was sitting on an overturned plastic crate in front of her tent checking that her gun was fully loaded and counting the rest of her bullets when, after minutes of hearing the car alarm, Glenn finally pulled up. Marianne stayed where she was and finished counting. She could be patient, especially since she knew Merle would turn up soon. She didn't have to worry anymore. It was when the van arrived that she made her way over to the group and stood next to Lori.

Andrea was the first to appear. Amy ran to her and the sisters hugged. Next came Morales, then Jacqui and then T-Dog trailing behind them both.

Marianne looked them over. With the exception of T-Dog's face everyone looked good. Morales' little girl ran to him and Morales picked her up. The corner of her mouth twitched in an almost smile. Marianne watched the family's happy reunion and noticed that Lori pulled Carl away. The boy looked like he was about to cry.

"You are a welcome sight," Dale said. Marianne looked expectantly at the van, waiting for Merle to appear. He sure was taking his sweet time. She knew he'd give her hell for greeting him on his return. He'd call her a lost puppy.

"I thought we had lost you folks for sure." Dale and Morales hugged.

"How'd y'all get out of there anyway?" Shane asked. Marianne wanted to know too. She bet Merle had nothing to do with it, probably did more harm than good.

"New guy," Glenn answered. "He got us out."

"New guy?" Shane looked mildly confused.

"Yeah, crazy vato just got into town," Morales said. "Hey, helicopter boy! Come say hello." A door slammed shut. Still no Merle. Marianne's hands felt cold.

"The guy's a cop. Like you," Morales told Shane. A man in a police uniform stepped into sight and the next thing she knew Carl was yelling "Dad" and the two ran to each other and into a hug that landed them on the ground. Marianne watched another family reunion, an extremely unexpected one. She thought Lori's husband was dead. Marianne looked over at Shane to watch his reaction. He looked overwhelmed with a jumble of emotions she didn't bother to decipher.

"Sorry to break up this heartwarming reunion but where the hell is Merle?" Everyone was startled, like they had forgotten about him. "Well?"

"Uh, there was a problem," Glenn said uneasily. He couldn't look her in the eye.

"He dead?"

Glenn hesitated.

"It's a yes or no question."

"Ma'am I'm sorry about your brother but you know how he gets. He was causing trouble, putting our lives at risk. I had no choice," Rick intervened.

"No choice?"

"I handcuffed him to a pipe on the roof. We left him behind. We had no choice."

"You did what now?" She burst out laughing and watched varying degrees of alarm pop up on everyone's face. "Good lord almighty. So you're tellin' me you handcuffed my brother to a roof in this heat, left for the walkers to tear their teeth into him?"

She glared at them all and now it wasn't just Glenn who couldn't look her in the eye. "You'll want me around when you tell Daryl and I sure as hell ain't doin' your dirty work for you. Here's a tip, watch out for the knife."

Marianne stormed off to her tent. She needed to be alone before she hurt somebody, particularly the new guy.

* * *

Marianne didn't know what to do. She paced around the Dixon's campfire. No one seemed bothered that Merle was gone and nobody showed the desire to rescue him. Who would want to rescue a racist redneck anyways? She kicked the plastic crate and it tumbled over and ran into the front of her tent.

Daryl would be devastated. The thought sobered her and she looked towards the woods hoping he would appear. On second thought, she didn't hope Daryl would show up soon. Marianne knew what she was going to do and if luck was on her side she'd be back in camp with Merle before Daryl even knew what had happened. But first, she'd need a little help.

"Glenn." The young man jumped.

"Oh, hey Marianne. What's up?"

"What's up is you're gonna to tell me exactly how to get to this department store."

He rubbed the back of his head, clearly intimidated. "I guess I can do that."

"Good. I knew there was a reason I didn't dislike you." Glenn flushed.

Everything was going according to plan until Shane walked up to her while she was putting her packed bag in Daryl's old truck

"Where are you off to?"

"Who are you? My dad?" Marianne hopped into the driver's seat and went to shut the door but Shane blocked it.

"Now, Marianne, I don't think this a good idea."

"You know what's not a good idea? Chaining a man up and leavin' him to die!" She put the key in the ignition.

"It's getting late. It'll be dark soon. You can't be in Atlanta at night. It's too dangerous."

"You may be their leader but you can't tell me what to do." She tried closing the door again but Shane wouldn't budge.

"Whether you like it or not, I'm not letting you go. I'll carry you outta this truck if I have to."

"You wouldn't dare."

"Watch me." Marianne glared at him, sizing him up. She could take him on but she couldn't take on the whole camp if they backed him up and she wouldn't put it past him to tie her up. "No one's gonna stop me. This is for your own safety."

"Fine. Be an asshole." Marianne grabbed her bag and Shane stepped aside as she got out of the truck.

"We can pick this up tomorrow."

"Screw you." Marianne slammed the truck door and knocked her shoulder into the infuriating man when she passed him.

She threw her backpack into a corner of her tent, not bothering to unpack it. She'd need it ready to go tomorrow. She sat on her cot and buried her face in her hands, which were trembling with rage. How dare Shane treat her like this? After she rescued Merle they were going to leave this group. Hell, she'd even let Merle steal a couple of things.

She heard footsteps getting closer to her. Whoever it was cast a large shadow over her tent. She waited for them to make the first move.

"Hello?" It was T-Dog. Why was he bothering her? And why now?

"What do you want?"

"I wanted to talk to you, if that's alright."

She lifted the flap of her tent and looked up at T-Dog. It didn't look like he'd go away. "Whatever you have to say make it quick. I'm not exactly in the mood for company."

T-Dog nodded. "I get it. I just wanted to tell you, about Merle… It was my fault. I dropped the damn key to the cuffs in a drain. But I chained the door. There's no way any geeks are going to get him."

"Is that supposed to make me feel better?"

"No, but you deserve an apology. I'm sorry." No one ever apologized to her. Not unless they accidently bumped into her.

"Did he do that to you?" She motioned to the injuries on his face.

"Yeah."

"Then I'm sorry too. Now go away." She dropped the tent flap, laid on her cot, and watched T-Dog's shadow retreat.

* * *

Marianne tossed and turned all night, too angry to get any good sleep. That morning the bright sun couldn't dissipate the dark, gloomy feeling inside of her. In retrospect, she realized her plan to rescue Merle by herself was a little stupid. She gave herself a mediocre chance that she could have pulled it off but even so, Shane had no right stopping her. This was her life, not his.

She decided to wait for Daryl to come back before trying anything again. What she needed was a day off so she shunned her chores and went down to the quarry. She made sure most of them saw where she was going so hopefully they'd stay away, because Marianne really didn't want to be around people.

Hours passed and only Shane had appeared at the quarry but he filled up on water so far away from where she was sitting he didn't see her. Marianne had skinny dipped and, with her clothes back on, she was basking in the sun. Her light brown hair was nearly dry when she heard them.

The screaming of children made her blood run cold and she didn't even really like kids. They asked too many questions. She ran into camp but the screaming had stopped so she couldn't pinpoint where it had come from. Still pissed off at everyone she refused to ask for directions but she noticed a lot of people were missing. She hoped they had reached the kids in time.

Marianne was about to give up when Daryl appeared with Shane, Rick, Dale, Glenn, Jim, and Morales trailing behind him.

"Merle!" He spotted Marianne so he didn't bother calling out for her. He didn't seem to notice anything was wrong. "Merle! Get your ugly ass out here! I got us some squirrel! Let's stew 'em up."

Daryl set his crossbow down against a small pile of logs by the camp's main fire. Shane approached her brother but she remained where she was standing, her hands on her hips and jaw clenched.

"Daryl, just slow up a bit. I need to talk to you." Shane glanced over at Marianne who just glared at him. There was no way she was going to help make breaking the news to Daryl any easier for them. They deserved her brother's wrath.

Daryl turned around. "About what?"

"About Merle. There was a— There was a problem in Atlanta."

Daryl looked at Marianne whose face didn't give anything away. "He dead?"

"We're not sure."

"He either is or he ain't! Marianne?"

"Ask him." She pointed at Rick. There was venom in her voice.

"No easy way to say this, so I'll just say it." Rick slowly walked towards Daryl.

"Who are you?"

"Rick Grimes."

" _Rick Grimes_. You got something you want to tell me?"

"Your brother was a danger to us all, so I handcuffed him on a roof, hooked him to a piece of metal. He's still there."

"Hold on. Let me process this. You're saying you handcuffed my brother to a roof and you left him there?"

"Yeah," Rick replied lamely and looked away.

Daryl threw his string of squirrels at Rick who dodged them. Then, extremely unnecessary in Marianne's opinion, Shane tackled her brother.

T-Dog who had earlier walked onto the scene carrying a load of firewood, dropped the logs. "Hey!" Daryl unsheathed his hunting knife. "Watch the knife!"

"Daryl! Stop!" Marianne ran towards her brother who took a swipe at Rick's face, which Rick avoided. She wanted the man to pay but not like this.

Fire burned in her chest when Shane put Daryl in a chokehold. The two men disarmed him.

"Let him go!" On second thought, maybe she'd take off where her brother was forced to leave off. She kept a knife in her boot no one knew about yet.

"Nah, I think it's better if I don't." Rick blocked her from rushing at Shane.

"Get your hands off me!"

"You'd best let her go!" Shane brought Daryl down to the ground.

"Choke hold's illegal," the Dixons said at the same time.

"Yeah, you can file a complaint," Shane said. Marianne slipped out of Rick's grasp only to be caught again. This time he twisted her right arm up against her back and held onto the other by her wrist.

Brother and sister struggled against their captors.

"Come on, man. We'll keep this up all day," Shane said.

"Let us go, assholes," Marianne practically growled.

"I'll let you go if you promise not to try anything," Rick said.

"Fine by me because I wasn't tryin' anything in the first place."

"Sure you weren't."

"Shut up Shane," Marianne said as Rick cautiously let her go. She shook out her right arm and glared at Rick. Looking satisfied that she wasn't going to attack, Rick walked up to Daryl and knelt down.

"I'd like to have a calm discussion on this topic. Do you think we can manage that?" Daryl didn't answer. "Do you think we can manage that?"

Still nothing from Daryl. He was really good at giving people the silent treatment. Marianne crossed her arms in front of her. Rick and Shane looked at each other and Shane roughly let Daryl go.

"What I did was not on a whim," Rick said. "Your brother does not work and play well with others."

"It's not Rick's fault," T-Dog chimed in. "I had the key. I dropped it."

"You couldn't pick it up?"

"Well, I dropped it in a drain."

Marianne helped Daryl, who was still recovering from Shane's chokehold, to his feet. "If it's supposed to make me feel better, it don't."

"Well, maybe this will. Look, I chained the door to the roof so the geeks couldn't get at him—with a padlock."

"It's got to count for something," Rick said.

Daryl rubbed his hand across his face. Marianne's heart wrenched. It looked like he was on the verge of tears. "Hell with all of y'all. Just tell me where he is. So's I can go get him."

"I know where he is. I was goin' after him yesterday but they stopped me."

"Stopped you how?"

"How do you think? Shane near forced me out of the truck."

"Bastard."

"Rick'll help you," Lori said unexpectedly, interrupting the beginnings of another fight. "Isn't that right?"

There was a pause and then Rick nodded. "I'm going back."

* * *

 **A/N: How'd you like it? I'd love to know.**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Thank you for the follows and the favorites.**

* * *

 **Chapter 3**

It was like a grotesque dream where nothing made sense. Here she was on a roof in a walker infested city staring at bloody handcuffs and the disembodied hand of her oldest brother, the instrument of torture next to it. She vaguely wondered if Dale would want his hacksaw back.

Daryl was screaming 'No' over and over. She felt more sorry for him than she did for the one handed Merle. Her stomach lurched. It wasn't because of the hand. It was because she realized, at that moment, she felt nothing for Merle. She had always loved him in her own way and the best she could under the circumstances. Daryl loved Merle more than she did. That was how it had always been. Merle was family and it had never occurred to her that she didn't have to stick by him. He was gone and she felt free. Guilt washed over her. Was she an awful person?

All four men misinterpreted her silence. T-Dog gave her a remorseful look. Glenn glanced at her furtively before doing an awkward shuffle. Rick came up beside her and put a hand on her shoulder. She jerked away from him and he quickly pulled his hand away.

"I'm sorry about Merle." A second apology in two days? The world really had ended. Marianne didn't respond.

Daryl yelled, swiftly turned around and aimed his crossbow at T-Dog's head. Just as quickly, Rick pulled out his Python and pointed it at Daryl's head.

Marianne stepped in front of T-Dog, blocking him from Daryl's line of fire. She was beginning to like T-Dog. First, he apologized to her and then he helped them try to rescue Merle. He owned up to his mistakes and she could respect that. Dropping the key was an unfortunate accident. It could've happened to anyone.

"Daryl. He's done right by us. He tried to fix his mistake. It's not his fault Merle chopped his hand off, the crazy bastard."

Daryl lowered his crossbow and grunted.

"Rick, now kindly point that thing away from my brother." Rick lowered his gun.

"You got a do-rag or something?" Daryl asked T-Dog.

T-Dog pulled a blue bandana out of his pocket and Daryl took it. Everyone watched as he neatly laid it out on the ground next to Merle's hand.

"I guess the saw blade was too dull for the handcuffs." Daryl gingerly picked up the hand by its pinky finger and examined it. "Ain't that a bitch?"

To Glenn's disgust, Daryl placed the wrapped up hand in his backpack. Marianne frowned, half wondering why Daryl was taking it in the first place.

She looked at the puddle of blood on the concrete. "He must have used a tourniquet, maybe his belt."

"Yeah, be much more blood if he didn't." Daryl started following a trail of it and T-Dog gathered Dale's tools. Soon, all five of them were back in the building with Daryl in the lead and Marianne in the back. As they walked down the stairs Daryl called out for Merle but there was no answer.

They continued down the stairs and through the building, encountering their first walker in a ransacked office which Daryl promptly took out with an arrow to its head.

They entered a reception area of some sort and found two dead walkers. Marianne wondered why the lamp by the window was knocked over. Why was this place a mess? There would've been nothing good to loot here.

"Had enough in him to take out these two sumbitches…One handed." Daryl reloaded his crossbow. "Toughest asshole I ever met, our brother. Feed him a hammer, he'd crap out nails."

"Any man can pass out from blood loss, no matter how tough he is," Rick said.

They searched some more and found a kitchen with the gas stove turned on. Blood was smeared on it and they discovered evidence that Merle had cauterized his wound.

"Told you he was tough," Daryl said with a hint of pride in his voice. "Nobody can kill Merle but Merle."

"Don't take that on faith. He's lost a lot of blood," Rick countered.

"Yeah? Didn't stop him from busting out of this death trap." Daryl brought their attention to a busted window.

"He left the building. Why the hell would he do that?" Glenn was dumbfounded.

"Why the hell does Merle do anything?" Marianne ran her fingers through some loose bangs and tucked them behind her ear. She had known Merle most of her life and he still surprised her from time to time.

"Why wouldn't he? He's out there alone as far as he knows, doing what he's got to do." Daryl finished looking out of the window and Rick took his place. "Surviving."

"You call that surviving?" T-Dog asked in disbelief. "Just wandering out in the streets, maybe passing out? What are his odds out there?"

"No worse than being handcuffed and left to rot by you sorry pricks." Marianne conceded that Daryl had a point. Daryl turned to Rick. "You couldn't kill him. Ain't so worried about some dumb, dead bastard."

"What about a thousand dumb, dead bastards? Different story?" Marianne was preparing herself to intervene between Rick and Daryl, something she felt like she'd be doing a lot of if she and Daryl stuck with this group.

"Why don't you take a tally? Do what you want. Me and Marianne are gonna go get him."

"Daryl, wait." Rick held his hand up against Daryl's chest and pushed back on him. There it was. Time to step in between these two men.

"Get your hands off me! You can't stop us," Daryl said as Marianne firmly situated herself in front of Daryl.

"I don't blame you. He's family, I get that. I went through hell to find mine," Rick said to both siblings. "I know exactly how y'all feel."

"Then if you're not goin' to help, let us be," Marianne said.

"That's what I was about to propose. He can't get far with that injury. We could help you check a few blocks around but only if we keep a level head." This time Rick was talking over Marianne and directly at Daryl. Apparently, her head was level enough for the cop.

"I could do that."

"Only if we get those guns first," T-Dog added. "I'm not strolling the streets of Atlanta with just my good intentions, okay?"

A genuine smile graced Marianne's face. "Thank you T-Dog." Daryl gave Marianne an annoyed look which she ignored. "I guess we'll be needing a plan."

They moved their planning party to one of the ransacked offices. Marianne nearly slipped on some loose papers, leaving behind dirty boot prints on now obsolete forms. Daryl smirked at her clumsy footing and Marianne playfully elbowed him. The interaction didn't go unnoticed by the rest of the men, who weren't used to Daryl showing affection of any kind or degree or seeing Marianne as anything but serious.

Daryl half sat on the side of a desk and Marianne sat cross legged on top of the one across from him. T-Dog sat on the ground leaning against a different one with Glenn kneeling down beside him while Rick stood in the middle of them all with hands on his hips, in an authoritative stance. This was definitely a man who thought he was in charge.

"You're not doing this alone," Rick said in response to Glenn proposing he grab the guns by himself.

"Even I think it's a bad idea and I don't even like you much," Daryl said.

"It's pretty stupid for someone that's not a complete idiot," Marianne added.

"It's a good idea, okay, if you just hear me out." Glenn looked up at Rick. "If we go out there in a group, we're slow, drawing attention. If I'm alone, I can move fast. Look." Glenn drew everyone's attention the crude but effective map he had drawn on the floor with a dry erase marker.

He placed his hand a on a large binder clip. "That's the tank, five blocks from where we are now." He put a crumpled up scrap of paper next to it. "That's the bag of guns." He pointed to a spot on the map. "Here's the alley I dragged you into when we first met. That's where Daryl, Marianne, and I will go."

"Why me?" Daryl asked.

"Your crossbow is quieter than his gun." Glenn placed a large paperclip down. "While Daryl and Marianne wait here in the alley, I run up the street, grab the bag."

"But you got us elsewhere?" Rick asked.

"You and T-Dog, right. You'll be in this alley here." Glenn put an eraser on the map.

"Two blocks away? Why?" Rick asked.

"I may not be able to come back the same way. Walkers might cut me off. If that happens, I won't go back to Daryl and Marianne. I'll go forward instead, all the way around to that alley where you guys are. Whichever direction I go, I got you in both places to cover me. Afterwards, we'll all meet back here."

"Hey kid, what'd you do before all this?" Daryl asked.

"Delivered pizzas. Why?"

* * *

Glenn's plan was a good one but he forgot about one thing. Other survivors. It happened fast and Daryl didn't take the diplomatic approach when a teenage boy appeared. The boy wouldn't stop yelling and Daryl hit him across the face with his crossbow, knocking him to the ground. Not one hundred percent pleased with her brother's tactics but, finding force was often the only option in these types of situations, Marianne decided to keep a look out for swarming walkers at the alley entrance.

Instead of the starving undead charging at them, it was two very angry looking men. She retreated in between two dumpsters so the men wouldn't spot her when they first ran into the alley.

"Daryl!" She yelled in warning as she tackled the second skinnier, younger guy and let the bald one go after Daryl. They hit the ground, with Marianne on top of him knocking the breath out of the stranger and making him drop his metal bat. She kept him pinned down and watched helplessly as the other man repeatedly kicked Daryl.

Glenn appeared, nearly running over Marianne, who was now punching the younger guy in face to try to take some fight out of him. "Glenn, help Daryl!"

Glenn, still shocked by the scene he had stumbled, froze. "Glenn!"

"That's it. That's the bag, vato! Take it! Take it!" The man underneath her yelled, drawing the other man's attention to Glenn. He went after Glenn, and Marianne hit the man underneath her one last time before launching herself at the bald guy who had just punched Glenn to the ground.

The fight was quick and sloppy with Glenn being completely useless. She needed to remind herself to give him a few pointers if they made it out of this alive. The bald man screamed in agony and Marianne saw an arrow sticking out of his ass. This made things a little easier.

Except, she felt something hit the side of her face. Marianne had forgotten about the metal baseball bat she had knocked out of the younger man's hand. She stumbled and it was just enough time for another man to grab her and throw her into a car that had just pulled up. She landed on top of Glenn who scrambled to get out from under her.

Her head pounded and she could feel a large bruise forming. At least there wasn't any blood. She hated stitches. Despite the strong urge to close them Marianne kept her eyes opened and watched where they were going. She didn't know Atlanta, having only been there a few times before, so even though she remembered the turns and what the streets looked like she had no clue where she was in the city. It didn't take long to arrive at their destination.

"You've got to be kidding me. A nursing home? You're risking these senior citizens' lives for some guns?"

"No, we're trying to protect them with those guns." Said the man who had introduced himself as Guillermo, who she presumed was their leader.

"You're an idiot."

"I don't think you should be talking to them like that when they have guns pointed at us," Glenn whispered to her. She scoffed.

"Look, we don't want to cause any trouble. Right Marianne?"

"Right. We'll be the most well behaved hostages you've ever had."

Guillermo laughed. "I'm starting to like her."

* * *

For the second time that day, Marianne felt like she was dreaming. Here she was in a walker infested city, a hostage in a nursing home full of abandoned old people and their families. And now she was being nearly dangled over the side of a roof with duct tape over her mouth and Glenn whimpering beside her.

She looked down to see Rick and Daryl with the teenage boy as their prisoner. Two people for one wasn't a fair trade. They were going to want the guns. She hoped Daryl wouldn't try anything stupid just because she was involved.

With their little performance over Marianne and Glenn were back inside the nursing home with two men guarding them. There was nothing better to do than talk to her fellow captive. Plus, with her head injury, she needed to keep alert.

"So, you were a pizza delivery boy." Glenn stared at her. "I'm tryin' to do some small talk here."

"Oh um, yeah. What'd you do?"

"I was a waitress. Trying to save up for college. Had a full-ride scholarship but that didn't pan out."

"What happened?"

"I'd moved into my own crappy apartment but the paperwork went to my dad's. He never told me about it. The deadline passed and I lost it."

"Man, that sucks."

"Yeah, well that's life. It don't matter anymore." There was a pause. "So, how exactly did Shane find out I was goin' back for Merle?"

"Well, um, look. You see, Dale asked me and I'm not the greatest liar and I'm terrible at keeping secrets. He must have told Shane."

"Meddling old fool."

"Hey, he was just worried about you."

"Worried about me?" She let out a derisive laugh that hurt her head. "More like he was bored."

"You probably won't believe this but some of us care about you."

"You're right. I don't. No one cares about the Dixons." She sighed. "Look, I know Merle is a shitty person and I know you didn't want to come but I'm grateful you did and so is Daryl. Just don't tell him I told you. For your own sake, not mine."

"How are you not freaked out right now?"

Marianne shrugged. "I don't know. Would you believe it if I said I'd been through worse before the dead started eating people?"

"Really?"

"Maybe I'll tell you a story or two sometime. But you'll have'ta get me shitfaced drunk first and that's not an easy thing to do." She smiled at Glenn but she didn't know why. "Don't worry about our sorry situation too much. I have a feeling you and me are gonna be just fine."

The conversation lulled and Marianne found herself sitting on the floor with a Chihuahua in her lap after one of the elderly women noticed she was hurt and made one of their guards give her a glass of water and aspirin. She smirked at the sight of a frail, old woman bossing around a big, tough looking man.

Glenn had wandered off and was talking with some of the other people in the room. Marianne was engrossed with playing with the dog until an old man started having an asthma attack and no one could find his medicine. One of the old women left to get help. Marianne abandoned the dog to go stand next to Glenn, who looked extremely worried for the asthmatic old man.

Not even three minutes later the old woman returned with several people in tow.

"What the hell is this?" Rick asked.

"An asthma attack," Glenn answered in all seriousness, completely missing the point of Rick's question. Marianne suppressed a laugh. She was starting to really like this guy. "Couldn't get his breath all of a sudden."

"I thought y'all were being eaten by dogs, man," T-Dog said angrily. This time Marianne did laugh which she instantly regretted since it sent a hard throbbing pain through her head. The group turned to look at the three Chihuahuas lying in a dog bed together. The middle one barked at them.

Daryl looked at his sister and finally noticed her swollen cheek and the dark purple and blue bruise on left side of her face. "Son of a bitch." He rushed over to her to inspect it while Rick pulled Guillermo aside for a talk.

"Hurts like one too."

"I'll kill the bastard—"

"Relax, he got the worse of it." She pointed to a man who sported two black eyes, a busted lip, and a nice looking bruise of his own along his jaw.

"Not bad enough if ya ask me."

"I didn't. So get over it. I have." Daryl gave her a skeptical look.

"Don't be a dumbass and act all tough, I don't need you passin' out. Ya got no color in your face 'cept blue and purple."

"Purple's my favorite color. And who says I'm actin'?"

Daryl huffed. "Ya know what I mean."

* * *

"Admit it, you only came back to Atlanta for the hat," Glenn said as the five of them walked back to the railroad tracks where they had left the van.

"Don't tell anybody."

"You've given away half our guns and ammo," Daryl said indignantly.

"Not nearly half."

"For what? Bunch of old farts who are gonna die off momentarily anyhow? Seriously, how long you think they got?"

"How long do any of us?" Rick asked.

They all stopped dead in their tracks and looked at the spot where their van should be.

"Oh my God," Glenn said.

"Where the hell's our van?" Daryl asked shifting his eyes back and forth.

"We left it right there. Who would take it?" A hint of panic entered Glenn's voice.

"Merle," Marianne said simply and sighed.

Daryl briefly looked down before glancing at Marianne. "He's gonna be taking some vengeance back to camp."

* * *

 **A/N: Reviews are always appreciated.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Although she would never admit it, Daryl had been right in predicting that she'd downplay her injury for the sake of not slowing them down. They were practically jogging the entire way back in a futile attempt to reach camp before Merle could cause too much trouble, but Marianne wasn't holding her breath. In fact, she was having a hard time finding it. The ache in her head had spread to the rest of her tired body. She felt dizzy and whatever effect the aspirin had on her had surely worn off. Sweat trickled down her forehead and she wiped it away before it reached her eyes. A cold glass of water sounded real nice.

"We're almost there," Rick said.

"Maybe by the time Merle got back he'd lost too much blood to do any damage," Glenn said hopefully.

"Wouldn't count on it." Marianne stumbled.

"You alright?" T-Dog asked.

"I'm fine."

"Looks like you're about to keel over." Daryl eyed the nasty bruise on her face.

"I said I'm fine," she snapped, instantly regretting the tone of her voice.

Before anyone had a chance to speak again, they heard screaming and gunshots. Their worst nightmare had come to life

That last desperate sprint to camp nearly killed her and bursting on to a scene of horror didn't help but she quickly got her bearings and started shooting, hoping to save more than one life tonight but by the looks of it, they'd be lucky to save anyone.

When the shooting stopped and the last walker had fallen everyone was in shock, most of them still in a fighting stance looking warily around the devastated camp. Glenn was close to hyperventilating and the children whimpered. Carl clung to his dad. She watched Amy die.

She had lied. She wasn't fine.

Marianne fell to her knees, nausea overtaking her making her lean forward on her hands. A cold wave rippled through her body and she let her head hang down, squeezing her eyes shut and trying to make her body obey her command to stay in control. Her head pounded more than ever, each throb punctuated by Andrea's cries. She heard Daryl calling her name but couldn't bring herself to look up.

"I should've killed the son of a bitch that did this."

"What happened to her?"

"Is she bit?"

"No, she's not bit," he spat out. "Took a hit in the head from a metal bat."

A man kept asking her questions she didn't answer and she finally heard Daryl yell "Back off!"

A woman was kneeling in front of her telling her everything was going to be okay. She hated when people said that. This person had no clue if she was going to be alright.

Eventually, her brother scooped her up and carried her to her tent. Marianne hadn't passed out but she was too damned tired to move and her eyelids were too heavy to open. They might as well have been cemented shut. She was having a hard time caring about anything but sleep and not dying.

The night was a rough one. When she had cracked her eyes open it was still dark and Daryl was determined to keep her awake, not letting her doze off for more than an hour at a time and he kept forcing her to drink water. She felt bad for him. Marianne knew he was feeling guilty for not protecting her, a responsibility she had absolved him of years ago.

When morning arrived she was in only a little better off shape than the camp was. Daryl ordered her to sit down if she wasn't going to stay in her tent. She watched as her brother went around the fallen, putting a pickaxe in their heads so they stayed that way. Beside the RV, Andrea still held vigil over Amy's body.

Her head continued to hurt but she was itching to help, to do something besides sit around being useless. She didn't like being useless.

Glenn and T-Dog hauled bodies into two separate piles which she stared at and quickly realized the theme for each, one for the walker strangers and one for their own dead. Soon they set fire to the pile of dead walkers. Even though she had managed not to pass out last night, the smell of rotting burnt flesh might do her in soon.

Lori made her way towards her. She wasn't the first to stop and talk to her. Marianne and Jacqui had talked more that morning than they ever had before. T-Dog, Glenn, Rick, Miranda, Carol, Dale and even Shane exchanged more than a few words with Marianne. It was unnerving and Daryl kept staring down everyone that came near her. Apparently being injured made her more approachable.

"How're you feeling?"

"About as good as I look," Marianne answered for the seventh or eighth time. She'd lost count.

"I wanted to ask if you wanted something to eat. I didn't see you have breakfast."

"I'm not hungry." Lori gave her a look. "No, really. I'm not."

"I'll bring you a little something over, maybe for later." Lori had a this-case-is-closed mom voice so Marianne knew there was no arguing with the woman.

"If that's what makes you happy."

Lori walked away and Glenn caught Marianne's attention.

"We don't burn them!" He yelled at Daryl and Morales, a dead camper at their feet, whose name she hadn't bothered to remember. "We bury them. Understand? Our people go in that row over there."

Daryl and Morales complied and dragged the dead man over to the other deceased campers.

"You reap what you sow!" Her brother shouted. Marianne winced.

"You know what? Shut up, man," Morales said.

"Y'all left my brother for dead. You had this coming." She watched Daryl storm off and even though she knew it didn't make any sense, a tiny part of her agreed with him.

Marianne was about to go after Daryl when Jacqui announced to the camp, "A walker bit Jim." Everyone looked at the man and began circling him. The losses of last night were still coming.

Jim started to put up a fight like an animal trapped in a corner, picking up a shovel to defend himself, but T-Dog came up from behind him and easily disarmed him. Daryl lifted Jim's shirt to reveal the bite on his stomach. The sight was a death sentence.

"I'm okay." The dead man walking repeated over and over.

While Jim was led to sit down at the end of the RV the group convened into a circle, Marianne included standing between Daryl and T-Dog, and they debated what to do with Jim. Daryl suggested they put a pickaxe in his head.

"I hate to say it. I never thought I would, but maybe Daryl's right," Dale said.

"Jim's not a monster, Dale, or some rabid dog." Anger was creeping into Rick's voice.

"I'm not suggesting—"

"He's sick. A sick man. We start down that road, where do we draw the line?"

"The line's pretty clear. Zero tolerance for walkers or them to be," Daryl declared.

"What if we can get him help? I heard the CDC was working on a cure," Rick said.

Shane disagreed and the two friends argued. Shane advocated going to the army base, Fort Benning. Marianne was dubious about this plan to go 100 miles out of their way for something that might not be there with resources they didn't have.

Daryl kept looking behind him at Jim.

"You go looking for aspirin. Do what you need to do."

"Daryl, don't." Marianne put a hand on his arm but he pulled away. Weapons and Daryl's temper never mixed well.

"Someone needs to have some balls to take care of this damn problem!"

In a flash, Rick had a gun pointed at her brother's head. Again. Marianne really needed to sit down or have a drink, or maybe both.

"We don't kill the living."

"That's funny coming from a man who just put a gun to my head."

Shane positioned himself between Daryl and Jim. "We may disagree on some things, not on this. You put it down. Go on."

Daryl slammed the pickaxe on the ground. Marianne grabbed it and followed him.

"You shouldn't be walkin' around."

"You shouldn't be swingin' pickaxes at peoples' heads."

"I don't need a lecture."

"I'm not. Just some sisterly advice." Daryl stopped walking and took the pickaxe from Marianne. "These people don't get it. Not yet. They're too soft for you and you're too rough for them. You've had to be. Hell, we both have. Let them do it their way as long as it don't get us both killed. They'll learn soon enough."

"You sure that wasn't a lecture 'cause I nearly fell asleep."

"Shut up, you big jerk. I'm tryin' to be helpful."

"Be a help and sit back down before I make ya."

* * *

They buried their dead and it was finally decided that the group was going to the CDC in the morning. The Dixons settled around their camp fire for the night. With so many people gone, the place felt like a ghost town. Thinking about last night, Marianne was grateful she and Daryl were alive. She had convinced herself that they'd be the ones that would survive for years to come but she also knew that if nothing was certain in the world before the dead started rising, than it was undoubtedly that way now. All they could do was try to stay alive.

"Are we goin' with them?" Daryl asked Marianne, interrupting her thoughts. "Your choice."

"We've got nothin' better to do. Why not go for the ride? It's not like it's safe here. Never was." She shrugged. She wouldn't say it out loud but she felt a little better being with other people.

"It ain't safe anywhere no more."

"You're supposed to be makin' me feel better."

"Oh really? I thought brothers were supposed'ta torment their sisters."

"We got enough torment from other people."

"Can't argue with that."

They both stared into the fire, remembering things best left in the past.

The next day came swiftly. The camp was packed up. It was a fight but Marianne got Daryl to back off and let her take down her own tent. Although it was morbid and a few people argued against it, the dead campers' belongings were redistributed among the group. They left behind what they didn't need or couldn't justify taking up space in their vehicles.

Shane was giving the group instructions when Morales and his family told them they were going to try for Birmingham and then they said their goodbyes. Personally, Marianne thought their quest was futile. It was beyond a miracle that Rick had found his family again and who was to say their people were still alive? The odds were against them. When driving out of camp, the family turned right and everybody else turned left.

Marianne had been drifting off to sleep when Daryl stopped the truck. "What's going on?"

"RV must've stalled," Daryl said.

"Dale wouldn't shut up about the radiator hose the other day. I bet that's what this is."

"Let's go find out."

The siblings left the truck and joined the others at the front of the RV.

"I told you we'd never get far on that hose," Dale said to Rick. "I needed the one from the cube van."

"Can you jerry-rig it?" Rick asked.

"That's all it's been so far. It's more duct tape than hose. And I'm out of duct tape."

Shane had binoculars out and spotted something up the road, hopefully a gas station. And hopefully that gas station had a radiator hose.

Jacqui came hurrying out of the RV. Jim was getting worse. Marianne didn't think he was long for this world. He wouldn't make it to the CDC. Rick entered the RV while Shane and T-Dog drove off in search for a hose.

Along with a few other people, she watched the tree line looking for walkers before they could sneak up on them. She was feeling better even though being hot and sweaty made her head hurt a little more than it had in the early morning. According to Daryl, the swelling was completely gone.

Rick waited for Shane and T-Dog to come back with the much needed radiator hose and some duct tape, just in case, before rounding everybody up for another talk about Jim. They had to decide if they'd leave him behind like he had asked and after a quick debate they decided to respect Jim's wish. Rick and Shane helped him out of the RV as carefully as they could and half carried the man to a tree a little ways up off the road.

As goodbyes were said, Marianne hung towards the back of the group. Daryl gave him a nod and Marianne mirrored him. There was nothing left to say. The group was silent as they got into their vehicles and drove away. Marianne didn't look back.

* * *

The sun was going down as they arrived at the CDC but there was still plenty of light left in the day to see them, the hundreds of dead bodies that littered the ground. Even if they hadn't have seen them, the overwhelming smell of decay would've alerted the group to their presence. The mood was still somber from leaving Jim behind and all of this death at their hoped for sanctuary wasn't exactly raising their spirits.

They cautiously weaved their way through the dead bodies, of soldiers and civilians alike, towards the CDC entrance. Marianne wasn't breathing through her nose but, the smell was so strong, it barely helped. Everyone was coughing. Marianne spotted a child sprawled on the ground, boy or girl she couldn't tell, and quickly looked away.

They reached the entrance but heavy duty metal shutters were covering the doors and windows. Shane banged on one of them.

"There's nobody here," T-Dog said.

"Then why are these shutters down?" Rick asked, dogged in his belief that they would find a safe haven there.

Marianne and Daryl spotted the walkers at the same time and alerted the group. Carl and Sophia started to cry, their mothers drawing them close. Daryl shot the nearest one with his crossbow.

"You led us to a graveyard!" Daryl yelled at Rick.

"He made a call," Shane said.

"It was the wrong damn call!"

People started to panic. Marianne kept an eye on the incoming walkers. Night was fast approaching and the dark was descending on them. She'd never seen the sun set so fast. Shane suggested Fort Benning again but the idea wasn't well received.

Glenn, T-Dog, Daryl and Marianne pointed their rifles at the walkers, but she felt helpless knowing that gunfire would draw even more of them in. They started to head back to the vehicles when Rick stopped them, saying the camera moved.

"You imagined it," Dale said.

"It moved." Rick walked closer to the camera.

"Rick, it is dead, man. It's an automated device. It's gears, okay? They're just winding down. Now come on," Shane said. Rick refused and the two started fighting. This was not the time or the place for this.

The walkers were slowly but surely getting closer. Rick started banging on the shutters and screaming at the camera. People were yelling at him, trying to get through to him to make him see sense. Marianne wouldn't let herself die today.

Lori ran up to Rick and tried to push him away from the building. It didn't work so Shane grabbed Rick, who was still yelling, and dragged him away.

"You're killing us!"

All of a sudden the shutters clanked open and everybody turned around, stunned. The walkers were momentarily forgotten. A bright, white light washed over them and blinded them to what was inside. It made Marianne uneasy. Isn't this what the entrance to heaven was supposed to look like? They were trying to walk away from the light, not towards it, but death was creeping up behind them and Marianne knew the only good option was to enter the building.

* * *

 **A/N: I know not a lot happened in this chapter but I hope you like the interaction between Marianne and Daryl. Any feedback on that would be great. Next chapter is the CDC and after that is the start of Season 2.**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Thank you for the follows and the favorites and for continuing to read.**

* * *

 **Chapter 5**

The bright light abruptly turned off making Marianne wonder what the point of it was. Once they had all entered the building lobby and closed the doors they were greeted by a tall man with messy white-blonde hair pointing an automatic at them. Marianne kept a tight grip on her own gun.

"Anybody infected?"

"One of our group was," Rick answered. "He didn't make it."

"Why are you here? What do you want?" The man asked in quick succession.

"A chance," Rick said.

"That's asking an awful lot these days."

"I know."

The price of admission was a blood test that they readily agreed to it. The man told them to bring all the stuff they needed inside because the doors were going to stay closed. Marianne helped cover the men that retrieved their bags and they only had to put a knife through a couple of walker heads.

The metal shutters closed with a startling finality. Marianne wasn't sure how safe she felt with them down again. Yes, they were keeping the undead out but what if something went terribly wrong and they needed to leave? She didn't like feeling trapped.

Marianne always had at least one escape route figured out. It was how she had survived as a little girl who couldn't hold up her own in a fight yet. There was nothing wrong with admitting defeat and saving your ass by running away. Live to fight another day. That's what Daryl had told her when she was very young, with her mother recently dead and having just moved into her dad's place.

All fourteen of them crammed into a double-sided elevator.

"Doctor's always go around packing heat like that?" asked Daryl, who was himself holding a crossbow and a rifle.

"There were plenty left lying around. I familiarized myself," Jenner answered without missing a beat. "But you look harmless enough." He looked at Carl with a faint smile. "Except you. I'll have to keep my eye on you." Carl smiled and Jenner gave a short quiet laugh.

Marianne wondered, when was the last time Jenner had seen a kid and had he believed he'd see one again?

They walked down a hallway after Dr. Jenner, following him on blind faith that he'd lead them somewhere they'd want to be. He entered a large, dark room ahead of them.

"Vi, bring up the lights in the big room." There was humming and beeping before the lights came on. They appeared to be standing on a walkway that led to the center of the aptly named 'big room' where there were computers grouped on a circular raised platform.

Rick asked where everybody else was and Lori asked about Vi, which turned out to just be a very smart computer program.

"I'm all that's left. I'm sorry." After this not-so-happy revelation Dr. Jenner led them to a room that looked like a small lecture hall, where he'd draw their blood.

She hated needles and looked away before she could watch it slip into her vein. She could feel Jenner studying her face as her blood filled the vial.

"It's not polite to stare. Aren't you goin' to ask what happened?"

"I was thinking about it."

"We had a little misunderstanding with some other survivors."

"I should see the other guy, right?"

"She held her own," Rick said after it was obvious Marianne wasn't going to answer Jenner.

"I believe it."

Andrea was next and was a little slow when standing back up. Jenner found out the group was more than a little hungry.

Their next stop was a small cafeteria, where food and wine were pulled out for them. Marianne nursed her own glass as she watched the people around her cheerily partake in their impromptu feast. She laughed along with the others when Carl tried a sip of wine and pulled a face, finding the adult drink disgusting.

Jenner sat a little bit away from the group at a separate table. Marianne noted that he looked outright depressed and Rick must have too because he stood up and called a toast to thank their host.

"So when are you gonna tell us what the hell happened here, Doc?" Shane decided to ruin the good mood. "All the, uh, the other doctors that were supposed to be figuring out what happened. Where are they?"

"We're celebrating, Shane. Don't need to do this now." Rick sat back down.

"Whoa, wait a second. This is why we're here, right? This was your move, supposed to find all the answers. Instead we—" Shane chuckled in discontent. "We found him." He pointed his thumb at Jenner. "Found one man. Why?"

"Well, when things got bad a lot of people just left. Went off to be with their families. And when things got worse, when the military cordon got overrun, the rest bolted." Marianne wasn't surprised to hear this, especially after seeing the devastation outside.

"Every last one?" Shane asked.

"No. People…opted out. There was a rash of suicides. That was a bad time."

"Dude, you are such a buzz kill, man," Glenn told Shane and Marianne wholeheartedly agreed with him.

With their late dinner wrapped up on a low, Jenner led them to an area where they could find their own rooms to sleep in. He explained how housing and most of the rest of the facility was powered down but that the couches were comfortable. When Jenner mentioned hot water T-Dog and Glenn hurried to the showers.

After setting her stuff down in one of the rooms she found Daryl in the one next to her, still holding onto a bottle of wine.

"So what do you think about all this?" Marianne leaned against the door frame.

"I think that I'm goin' to drink some more and enjoy sleepin' without one eye open." He offered the bottle but she shook her head.

"I've had enough."

"You sure? You barely touched the stuff earlier."

"I'm not in a drinkin' mood."

"What's wrong? Is it your head?"

"Nothing's wrong. I'm still processing." Daryl nodded in understanding. "I'm gonna go process some more under some hot water."

It was one of the best showers she had taken in her entire life. The hot water cascaded over her body, relaxing her taut muscles. The steam rose around her and she closed her eyes and relished the heat. Her worries were washing away with all the dirt and gore caked on her skin.

Marianne put on the cleanest clothes she had and wondered around; poking into places Jenner probably wouldn't want her to until she finally returned to hallway where they were staying. Her eyes widened as she walked into the rec room and then her temper flared. When the time came it could hold its own against Daryl's.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?"

Shane skittered away from Lori, where he had her backed against a pinball machine, looking extremely guilty. He left the room in a real hurry, quickly looking at Marianne as he walked past her. She didn't like the look on his face. It was almost as if he was warning her, but he was the one that needed to watch out.

She closed the door behind Shane and walked over to Lori. "Are you okay?"

Lori was shaken and she took quick unsteady breaths. Tears were welling up in her eyes.

"I'm fine."

"You're not."

"Just don't tell Rick." The woman was trying her hardest not to sob. Marianne nodded reluctantly and Lori looked relieved, like it was one less thing for her to worry about.

But Marianne didn't stop with just a nod. "It's none of my business. But I'll make it be if I see this happen again." She wasn't exactly sure what she would do but she'd make sure it was unpleasant for Shane.

Lori left the rec room and Marianne quickly browsed the books before deciding she didn't want to read. Why read when you could sleep walker free?

* * *

Having had only a couple of drinks last night Marianne was in good form when she woke up. Her head had recently stopped aching and she had wanted to avoid getting a hangover. She was the earliest one awake and in the kitchen, eager to make the coffee her way before somebody beat her to it.

Jenner was the first person she saw. He showed her where everything was and what there all was for breakfast food and handed her a bottle of aspirin in case anyone needed it. She gave him a smile when he pointed out the bacon.

After Jenner left, the women, children and Dale trickled in. All of the women seemed to be having a happy morning, not having overdone it the night before. Glenn miserably stumbled into the room groaning and Marianne grinned. Daryl really did do a number on him last night, encouraging the younger man to drink more than he had in his entire life.

When T-Dog arrived he appreciatively took the cup of coffee she offered and with it in hand went rummaging through the pantry and fridge, exclaiming victory when he found powdered eggs. Having finished the bacon, she vacated the stove for T-Dog who was excited about making scrambled eggs.

Rick eventually walked into the room and sat in the empty chair between Marianne and Lori.

"Are you hungover?" His son asked with a smirk. "Mom said you'd be."

"Mom is right."

"Mom has that annoying habit," Lori said, amusedly eyeing her husband.

"Eggs. Powdered, but I do 'em good." T-Dog approached the table with a pan. Glenn groaned some more. "I betchya can't tell. Protein helps the hangover," he told Glenn as he spooned some onto the man's plate.

Shane arrived looking like he'd woken up on the wrong side of the bed.

"Feel as bad as I do?" Rick asked.

"Worse," Shane answered.

Marianne watched Lori. No one else noticed anything was wrong with her even though she wasn't doing the best job hiding it. Marianne glared at Shane as he sat down. Jenner walked in and she moved her focus back to her last piece of bacon.

"Doctor, I don't mean to slam you with questions first thing—"

"But you will anyway." Jenner interrupted Dale while pouring himself some coffee.

"We didn't come here for the eggs," Andrea said.

"I did," Marianne said to herself, making T-Dog grin at her. A few others found it amusing but Andrea didn't appreciate her comment.

Dr. Jenner turned around and looked like he was debating something. He nodded. "I'll show you after breakfast."

With the knowledge that they were going to find out what the hell was going on in the world they ate quickly and Jenner didn't have time to finish his coffee before he was leading them to the big room.

He walked up to one of the computers on the circular platform and they all followed him. He typed something and said, "Give me playback of TS-19." Images came up on a very large screen in front of them. Most of them were of inside a person's head.

"Few people ever got a chance to see this."

"Is that a brain?" Carl asked.

"An extraordinary one. Take us in for E.I.V."

"Enhanced Internal View," Vi responded. One of the images was zoomed into so you could see the brain more closely and then it kept zooming until it stopped at what Marianne knew were synapses and neurons from advanced biology in high school. It had been her favorite class.

Shane asked what the flashing lights were.

"Those are synapses, electric impulses in the brain that carry all the messages," Jenner explained. "They determine everything a person says, does or things from the moment of birth to the moment of death."

"Death? That's what this is, a vigil?" Rick asked, walking closer to the screen.

"Yes. Or rather the playback of the vigil." He paused. "This is Test Subject 19. Someone who was bitten and infected and volunteered to have us record the process."

Jenner asked Vi to scan to the first event and the image on the screen changed. It was still the same head but it was different, the brain was darker. Jenner explained how the infection invaded the brain like meningitis and how the infection progressed, how it killed. The person on the screen looked to be in pain, until all the flashing lights in the brain abruptly stopped and the person no longer moved.

Andrea was rapidly becoming more upset. Lori told Jenner how she lost her sister recently. He commiserated with Andrea and then he had Vi scan to the second event, which was the resurrection of the corpse.

A red glow appeared at the bottom of the brain and spread outward a little.

"It restarts the brain?" Lori asked apprehensively.

"No, just the brain stem. Basically it gets them up and moving."

"But they're not alive?" Rick asked.

Jenner confirmed this and told them how what makes a person themselves stays dead.

Marianne watched the reanimated corpse and suddenly a bullet went through the brain, killing the person for a second time.

Jenner ignored Andrea's question of whether he shot his patient. "Vi, power down the main screen and the work stations."

"You have no idea what it is, do you?" Andrea asked undeterred.

"It could be microbial, viral, parasitic, fungal."

"Or the wrath of God?" Jacqui asked, her voice betraying how upset she was.

"There is that," Jenner said. Marianne was getting angry. What had these people been doing all of this time? Why did they know so little?

"But I don't understand. How can you not at least know what it is? Can't you tell its basic structure from your samples? Didn't you run a DNA analysis?" Marianne asked.

Before he could answer Andrea butted in. "Somebody must know something. Somebody somewhere."

"There are other facilities, right?" asked Carol.

"There may be some. People like me."

"But you don't know? How can you not know?" There were undercurrents of frustration in Rick's voice.

"Everything went down. I've been in the dark for almost a month."

"So it's not just here," Andrea said. "There's nothing left anywhere? That's what you're really saying, right?"

Dr. Jenner didn't say anything and it didn't look like he would.

"Jesus," Jacqui said, closing her eyes and leaning back against a monitor.

"Man, I'm gonna get shitfaced drunk, again." Daryl said rubbing his face. He rested his elbows on top of a computer and put his head in his hands.

"Dr. Jenner, I know this has been taxing for you and I hate to ask one more question, but…" One more? He'd barely answered any of the ones they had asked. "That clock." Dale pointed at the object in question. "It's counting down. What happens at zero?"

"The basement generators, they run out of fuel."

"And then?" Rick asked but once again Jenner didn't answer. "Vi, what happens when the power runs out?"

"When the power runs out, facility-wide decontamination will occur." Marianne felt the blood drain from her face. Decontamination in a place like this meant death.

She rushed up to Rick. "We need to pack our things and go."

"Now hold on a second. We should check the generators first. See what we can do."

"What we can do? We can leave. That's what we can do."

But Rick wouldn't listen to her. He, along with T-Dog, Glenn, and Shane headed to the basement to look at the generators.

Next, she went up to Daryl. "We need to pack our things and head out."

"Rick hasn't said anything."

"Oh trust me, he'll be leaving soon. Do you know what decontamination is? It usually means fire. A big explosion that I don't want to be anywhere near, let alone inside of the damn building."

"Did you tell Rick?"

"I tried. Since when does a man like that listen to somebody like me?"

The rest of them went back to their rooms. Marianne told them that if they were smart they'd start packing but of course no one paid her any attention.

She didn't have much to pack, not really having had the chance to settle in. It took her less than a minute to put everything away so she headed towards the cafeteria intent on raiding it, dragging Daryl along with her and making him leave the alcohol behind.

"Grab everything you can," she said, quickly stuffing nonperishable food items until her bag would barely close. Daryl did the same. By the time they were back in the hallway where the rooms were, people were coming out of their own wondering why the air conditioning had stopped despite the fact that Jenner had just told them the generators would run out of fuel soon.

"The power's shutting down. What do you think?" Marianne couldn't believe how deep in denial these people were.

Jenner walked into the hallway and they asked him, meaning once again she was ignored.

"Energy use is being prioritized."

"Air isn't a priority? And lights?" Dale asked.

"It's not up to me. Zone 5 is shutting itself down." Jenner continued to walk and everyone followed.

"Now will you people listen to me? We need to go."

Rick, Glenn, T-Dog, and Shane came running up from the basement.

"Rick?" Lori called down from the walkway they were on to her husband below them. The group went down the stairs to the main floor.

"Jenner, what's happening?" Rick asked heatedly, striding to meet the man.

"The system is dropping all the nonessential uses of power. It's designed to keep the computers running to the last possible second." They were all heading to the big room. "That started as we approached the half-hour mark. Right on schedule." He pointed to the digital clock.

Jenner stopped walking and they waited expectantly for him to speak. There was a brief pause. "It was the French."

"What?" Andrea asked.

"They were the last ones to hold out as far as I know. While our people were bolting out the doors and committing suicide in the hallways, they stayed in the labs till the end. They thought they were close to a solution."

"What happened?" asked Jacqui.

"The same thing that's happening here. No power grid. Ran out of juice."

Shane started off towards Jenner. "Let me tell you something—"

"To hell with it, Shane. I don't even care." Rick slowed Shane down and then turned around. "Lori, grab our things. Everybody, get your stuff. We're getting out of here now!"

"Finally," Marianne said. She and Daryl were already carrying their belongings. The rest of them started running to their rooms when a loud alarm went off and red lights started to flash.

"Thirty minutes to decontamination," Vi announced. Marianne watched suspiciously as Jenner ran over to something.

Large metal doors shot up from the floor and blocked the exit.

"He just locked us in!" Glenn yelled.

They had wanted so badly to get into the building but now all they could think about was getting out.

* * *

 **A/N: So, there you have it.** **I tried to cut down and cut out as much dialogue from the show as I could without losing the story.** **Sorry for the blah ending. If you're familiar with the show you know what happens at the end of the episode. I felt like Marianne wouldn't contribute enough difference to the scene for it to be worth writing it all out so there's going to be a very short time skip at the beginning of the next chapter, which will definitely be better than this one.**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Thank you for the follows and the favorites.**

Disclaimer: I do not own the Walking Dead.

* * *

 **Chapter 6**

Atlanta was too dangerous. It always had been but the risk was too great now that the CDC was gone and they had nowhere to take refuge in the city. After their near escape from a fiery death, all they wanted to do was leave the cursed place behind. So now they were heading to Fort Benning but Marianne didn't get her hopes up. A trip that used to take a couple of hours now had the potential to stretch into days. And then, when they finally arrived, what would be waiting for them? More death or a sanctuary?

They stopped in the city's outskirts to regroup.

"Okay, so it's decided. We're leaving behind the jeep, the truck, and the van. Daryl, T-Dog. You two can siphon the gas outta them. Everyone else, we've got some rearranging to do. Let's get this over with as fast as possible."

The group broke apart to get started on their tasks. Marianne headed to their truck.

"Hey Marianne." She stopped and turned to look at Rick. "Let's go talk." He motioned her over and she confusedly followed him out of hearing distance of the group. Daryl gave her a questioning look and she shrugged her shoulders in response. She didn't have a clue what this was about.

Rick put his hands on his hips and squinted as a ray of light filtered through the trees and landed on his face. "I wanted to say thank you to you and Daryl for grabbing the food and that I'm sorry for not hearin' you out back there. It could've saved us a whole lotta trouble."

"That's an understatement. You nearly got us killed. Next time maybe you'll listen. That's when I'll know you're sorry."

"Fair enough, I can accept that." Rick nodded.

"Is that all?"

"I guess it is."

She walked away but he spoke again. "I'm glad you and Daryl are sticking around." Marianne briefly stopped before resuming her course not knowing what to think about this revelation.

Daryl was almost finished siphoning the gas out of their truck when she got there.

"What'd he want?"

"He apologized," she said sounding a little mystified, "for not listening to me."

"Good."

"He also says thank you for the food. Not just to me, but to you." Daryl didn't say anything to that.

Marianne moved their stuff and helped Daryl take Merle's motorcycle down, which he would be using from here on out while she was stuck in the RV. At least she wasn't crammed into Carol's car with the kids. Although, she would trade the both of them for Shane any day. The man wasn't one for small talk so they could thankfully ignore one another.

It didn't take them long to pack up and move out. Daryl was in the lead, followed by the RV and the Cherokee.

For awhile she lounged on one of the single beds in the back reading one of Dale's books while T-Dog sat on the other looking out the window. The ride was a little bumpy but it sure beat sitting next to Shane and Andrea so she made do. Her attention eventually wandered away from the book and she walked to the front of the RV and stood behind Glenn, whose brow was furrowed as he studied a map.

"We making good time?"

"As long as we don't hit any traffic snarls and we find enough fuel we should be there by the end of the day," Dale said.

Minutes later he slowed the RV as they came up on a chaotic car pileup that stretched beyond what their eyes could see. Cars had veered off the road into the grass, doors were flung open and a semi had fallen onto its side sprawled across the highway right in front of them. Glenn sighed, upset at their newest obstacle and looked down at the map again. "Maybe I spoke too soon," Dale said.

Daryl doubled back and drove up to the RV's driver side window.

"See a way through?" Dale asked. Daryl nodded and motioned with his head for them to follow.

"Uh, maybe we should just go back," Glenn said. Marianne looked over his shoulder at the map. "There's an interstate bypass—"

"We can't spare the fuel." Dale said, ruling the idea out immediately.

They were crawling their way through the maze of cars when the RV made a very loud, hissing noise before it stopped working. When Daryl noticed they weren't following him anymore he turned his motorcycle around.

Dale cursed. "It's that radiator hose. It wasn't a perfect match."

How many times was this thing going to break down before they gave up on it? It was dangerous to be stranded on the road over and over. Their luck would run out soon and they'd be in real trouble.

Dale slammed the door open and they filed out of the RV. "I said it. Didn't I say it? A thousand times. Dead in the water."

"Problem, Dale?" Shane asked, already looking around and keeping an eye out for danger.

"Just a small matter of being stuck in the middle of nowhere with no hope of—" Dale stopped and looked at the mess they were in the middle of. Daryl and Marianne were already rummaging through the back of a station wagon. "Okay, that was dumb."

"If you can't find a radiator hose here…" Shane said.

"There's a whole bunch of stuff we can find." Daryl grabbed a green duffel from the back of the car he was looking through, dumped it, and put a few items he'd already found into the now empty bag.

"I can siphon more fuel from these cars for a start," T-Dog added.

"This is a graveyard," Lori said, dampening the group's plan on searching for food and water. Everyone looked around at the others' reaction to the melodramatic statement. "I don't know how I feel about this."

"This is survival. You either deal or you die," Marianne said.

There was a pause. Everyone seemed to agree with her, probably not in those exact words, and implicitly decided to ignore Lori's feelings.

Daryl and Marianne continued searching through the station wagon.

"Come on, y'all. Look around, gather what you can," Shane said unnecessarily as most of them had already started to do just that.

Daryl handed her the mostly empty duffle and went to help T-Dog collect more gas.

Glenn was roped into helping Dale fix the RV. Rick took out the gun bag and selected a rifle for himself. Marianne eyed it and wished she had one but it'd only get in the way when looking for supplies.

She walked in front of Carol, Lori, and the kids, and scrunched her nose when she passed by the truly dead body of a woman sitting in one the cars and wondered if she opted out or was murdered. Most of the people that had fled these cars were probably dead or walkers by now, walkers that had hopefully shuffled very far away from there.

Marianne came to a stop next to an old Buick with a bunch of stuff piled on the back seat. The doors were closed but thankfully, whoever owned the car didn't take the time to lock them. She opened the driver side door to pop the trunk and that's when she spotted it. On the passenger side floor, half hidden under the seat was a semi automatic pistol.

She climbed into the car and grabbed it, making sure the safety was on. Marianne opened the glove box and just as she had predicted she found the box of bullets. She had lost track of her own gun in Atlanta and had an inkling of whose hands it had ended up in. For now, she was going to hide this find. She didn't need Rick or Shane taking it away from her, like the handgun Rick had temporarily given her for the long walk back to camp.

Rifling through bags in the back and finding a homemade first aid kit and a couple of shirts Daryl might like, Marianne heard a man's hushed voice frantically telling them to get down. Right when she looked up somebody grabbed her arm and jerked her to the ground. It was Rick. He practically rolled her underneath a car and she scooted out of the way so he could get under too. It didn't take a genius to figure out what they were hiding from.

"Walkers," he mouthed to her. She nodded and then wondered if her breathing had always been this loud.

She couldn't decide what was worse, the sound of dragging feet on the asphalt or the distinct, eerily soft groaning that walkers made while mindlessly ambling through the world. On second thought, the groaning. Definitely the groaning.

The march of death seemed to go on forever. She hadn't seen how many were coming so she couldn't even estimate when this nightmarish situation would be over. This was the first time she wasn't grateful that walkers were slow.

After an eternity, no more walkers came but they all stayed under the vehicles waiting for them to get to a safe distance away from the group. Rick was breathing heavily beside her and preoccupied with looking at his son.

All of a sudden she heard Sophia cry out and the groaning of not one but two straggling walkers getting excited for their next meal. Rick grabbed his rifle and began scooting out from under the car. Marianne followed right behind him as fast as she could crawl out of the confined space. By the time she stood up Rick had already taken off.

She sprinted after Rick and Sophia. Why? She couldn't tell you what compelled her to take action while everyone else that saw what was happening just stood there and watched the girl disappear into the tree line. Maybe because it was more than one walker and Rick needed help. She didn't think he had a weapon on him other than his gun. Idiot. He should always have something else on him. She gripped her knife tightly as she vaulted over the metal railing. Marianne would tell him off later, after Sophia was safe.

She followed them the best she could but they had a good head start. Marianne kept losing Rick in between the trees and the overgrown bushes but didn't dare call out to him. He didn't need the distraction.

She heard a small scream and changed direction, running as fast as she could and trusting in herself that she wouldn't fall over something. Next she heard a splash and slightly altered her course. Soon she came upon a creek and heard Rick's low voice. Marianne carefully eased her way into the water.

"This is how we both survive, you understand?"

"Rick," she whispered as she walked towards them.

"What are you doing here?" He sounded displeased and relieved at the same time.

"Helping. I'll take care of Sophia."

"Take her back to the highway. Keep the sun on your left shoulder," he told her and Sophia.

"I know how to get back. Now go." Marianne entered the small cave made by erosion and tree roots. She held Sophia close to her. The two walkers had finally made it to the creek and Rick baited them.

"Come on!" He splashed water towards the walkers. "You ugly son of a bitch. Come on!"

One of the walkers fell into the creek bed and Marianne felt Sophia grab onto her shirt. Rick took off and the walkers followed. She waited a little while longer before exiting the cave first and looked around. The coast was clear and she motioned for Sophia to come out.

"Okay, we're gonna make our way back to your mom. How's that sound?" Sophia nodded, too frightened to speak. Marianne climbed out of the creek first and then pulled Sophia up out of the water.

She grabbed Sophia's arm and started running back to the highway as fast the girl could go. Without warning a walker stumbled out of the woods and into their path, quickly spotting them. Sophia screamed. Marianne had to let go of her to dispatch the walker. When she finished she turned around to grab Sophia again but saw her running back towards where they had come from.

"Sophia! Stop!" She ran after the girl and caught up to her at the creek.

"You can't just run away like that. Now come on," she said trying to keep the anger out of her voice.

But before they could start running again, two more walkers appeared. She could only assume all of these walkers had broken away from the others.

"Shit. I need you get out of the way but stay where I can see you." Sophia stood there clutching her doll, frozen with fear.

"Go!" Sophia flinched but moved further away from danger. She didn't like yelling at the poor girl. Her daddy did enough of that when he was alive.

Marianne gave the walkers her full attention. Walking through the dense undergrowth made them slow. Their groaning intensified as they got closer and the noise made her heart beat faster in anticipation.

The first one reached her and she didn't hesitate to plunge the knife into its eye socket. Marianne pulled the knife out, ready to take on the next one, but the dead walker had other plans. It fell towards her and she took a step backwards only to catch her heel on a tree root and fall straight onto her back. A jolt went through her head as it hit a rock and she cried out. Dazed and in pain she desperately wriggled her way out from under the large dead walker as the other one closed in on her.

There was no time to stand up. Marianne tripped the walker by kicking its ankle and it crashed face first next to her. Still determined to eat her it reached out and tightly grabbed her hair. It was on her left side, which was fortunate. Marianne swung her right arm around her, aiming the knife at the walker's head. Fading fast, she missed her mark. Marianne growled. This was not how she was going to die. She refused to leave Daryl behind.

She lifted her arm and took aim again. With all the strength she had left she stabbed the walker's head. The grip on her hair loosened. Marianne saw black speckles and knew she couldn't fight it. Wishing and hoping that someone would find her before any other walker decided to have a picnic, she slipped into darkness.

* * *

 **A/N: Season 2 is finally here and I hope I didn't disappoint. And I promise Marianne hitting her head won't become a recurring thing. She just had some bad luck.**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: I don't know if anyone's noticed that I've been updating every three days and I didn't this time. It's because I've hit a snag with a couple of chapters and it's been slow going. I want to try to keep regular updates for as long as possible so to accommodate my slower progress I'll be updating every four or five days until I get back up to speed. If things had gone better I was actually hoping to do a double update this time but that's life. As always, thank you for the follows and the favorites and for continuing to read.**

Disclaimer: I do not own the Walking Dead.

* * *

 **Chapter 7**

Rick was having a bad day. He wasn't sure what he was going to tell Daryl about the unconscious woman he was carrying through the forest as fast as his tired legs would move. He tried his best not to jostle her around. He didn't know how seriously she was hurt but he couldn't not move her. Rick wasn't going to leave her alone and helpless.

He briefly looked down at her face and noticed his shirt was stained with her blood. Right when he looked back up, he heard a groan. He stopped and looked down at her again.

"Marianne?" But she didn't respond so he kept going.

He was almost at the highway. All that was left was to climb up the small hill he had earlier rolled down. Everyone was gathered at the metal railing but that quickly changed as Daryl jumped down from the hood of a car and leapt over the railing. He ran down the hill towards him.

"What the hell happened?"

"I don't know. I found her like this." Rick was trying to catch his breath.

"What do you mean you found her?"

"I left her with Sophia but Sophia was gone and Marianne was lying on the ground next to two dead walkers."

"Give her to me." Rick reluctantly handed her over, not wanting to move her head more than necessary, but Daryl would be able to get her to the RV faster.

The two men climbed up to the highway. Rick struggled and even Daryl slipped a couple of times but managed to stay upright. They reached the top and Rick looked at the group but didn't spot the person he was searching for. Before he could ask where Sophia was, questions were being thrown at him.

"Oh my God. What happened?"

"Is she all right?"

"How bad is she hurt?"

"What's wrong with her?"

"Did a walker get her?"

He tried his best to answer but he couldn't wait any longer. "Where's Sophia?"

The group stopped talking and stared at him.

"She's not back?" Rick's heart sunk. Carol dropped to the ground, sobbing. His son was getting ready to cry, realizing his friend was still gone. He had failed.

Rick was having a really bad day.

* * *

Daryl gently put her down on a bed in the RV. It looked like her head had stopped bleeding, so that was good, but she hadn't regained consciousness and this worried him. He cursed under his breath. This was the second time in less than week that his baby sister was injured. Before all of this she'd never had accidents. Not even a single one in all the times they went hunting. Not once had she accidently cut herself or sprained an ankle. The worse she'd got were some bug bites and a sunburn.

"How's she doing?" Dale asked from behind him.

"How do you think?" Dale ignored Daryl's hostile tone.

"I've brought you our first aid kit and a fresh towel to put her head on, to try to keep the wound clean. We don't have much in the way of bandages."

Daryl took the items without thanking him. He was too worked up for pleasantries and it's not like he was that polite when in a good mood anyways.

He did the best he could. He knelt next to the bed and cleaned the gash with an antiseptic wipe and put some antibiotic cream on it but it looked like it might need stitches. He gingerly pressed a small square of gauze to cover the wound but didn't tape it since it'd just pull her hair when they needed to take it off.

Someone else came into the RV and he turned around to see Lori and Rick.

"Daryl, I know this is a bad time but we need your help to look for Sophia. I'm headin' back to where I left her and maybe you can track her from there."

Daryl couldn't say no. He wanted to stay with his sister but a little girl was still missing and there wasn't much left to do for Marianne.

"I'll go."

Rick gave him a strained smile. "Okay, let's head out."

"Don't worry. We'll take real good care of her while you're gone," Lori said sympathetically.

Rick led Daryl and Shane to the creek where he'd last seen Sophia and found Marianne. Close to their destination they came across a dead walker.

"They must have tried to make a run for it. Looks like it got in their way," Daryl said.

"But then why was she back at the creek?" Rick asked. Daryl studied the ground and saw a jumble of footprints and shrugged. He'd need more than that to come to a conclusion he'd be willing to share.

Arriving at the creek they saw two more dead walkers. "This is where I found her. In between those two." He pointed at the walkers. There was space between them just big enough for Marianne to fit. Her knife was still in a walker head and Daryl retrieved it. It was her favorite one.

Daryl looked around at the scene. "My guess is Sophia ran back here when Marianne was dealing with that walker back there and she followed Sophia and they met these two bastards. Sophia must've run off again. It shouldn't be too hard to find her tracks."

* * *

Someone wet was carrying her and breathing hard. She could feel a pounding heartbeat just out of sync with her own. Her head. Oh God, her head.

The bruised side of her face was leaning against a shoulder. It was throbbing again but now the back of her head hurt even worse than getting hit with a baseball bat. She groaned in pain but before she could open her eyes she was out again.

The next time she woke up she was on a somewhat familiar bed.

Her eyes fluttered open and she found Lori smiling down at her. The woman then promptly disappeared.

"She's awake," Lori called out of the RV door. Marianne heard quick footsteps and Dale appeared looking as happy as Lori did.

"Well, thank goodness for that."

"How are you feeling?"

"Like crap." She tried to sit up but winced and Lori gently pushed her back down.

"Don't get up. You've got a big cut on the back of your head and we don't have it wrapped up. We're trying to find something clean."

As if on cue Glenn ran into the RV. "I've got it. I think it's clean. At least, it smells like it is." He held up a wife beater that was long enough to tie around her head. Glenn spotted Marianne and smiled. All of this smiling was annoying the hell out of her. She closed her eyes.

"Marianne, you need to keep your eyes open. We don't want you falling asleep yet," Dale said. She groaned in protest but opened them anyways.

"Can you at least close the blinds? I've got a splittin' headache." Lori closed them and pulled the curtains shut. "Where's Daryl?"

"Him and Rick are out looking for Sophia."

This got Marianne's attention. "She didn't make it back?"

Lori shook her head sadly. "No, but I'm sure they'll find her."

"It's my fault," she said. "I should've just run instead of taking on those walkers."

"It's not your fault. You did what anyone else would've done. You didn't need walkers chasing after you and Sophia so you dealt with them."

"More like they dealt with me." Her eyes closed of their own volition but she forced them open. "Carol must be devastated." She couldn't imagine what it would be like to have a lost child.

Lori gave her a bottle of water and left her alone. T-Dog came to keep her company and make sure she didn't fall asleep but both of them were too listless to hold any kind of a conversation.

It was a little over an hour before Rick and Daryl returned. When she saw him, he was filthy and tired and smelled like walker guts, but she could tell that he was relieved to see her awake. She smiled weakly at him.

He didn't waste any time on a greeting and got straight to the point. "What exactly happened out there?"

"A giant ass walker fell on me. Forgot to yell timber and get out of the way. Guess I hit my head pretty hard." For the second time.

"Ya don't need'ta make a habit out of it."

"Believe me, I'm not plannin' on it." She wondered if Daryl had noticed she was injured both times while trying to help somebody.

"Here, I got you these from Merle's stash." He dug two pill bottles out of his pocket. "One's for pain and the other's an antibiotic."

"I never thought I'd be so happy to see Merle's drugs," she said as she uncapped each bottle and fished out the pills, swallowing the painkiller first. Daryl smirked.

"Me neither."

The pain pills knocked her out for the rest of the evening and all through the night. When she woke up that morning everyone, except for Dale and T-Dog, had left to search for Sophia. She was frustrated that she was rendered useless again. It was her fault Sophia was still missing and she should be out there too.

Marianne wasn't a big fan of being bed-ridden. She managed to at least convince Dale to help her to sit at the dinette table. If she sat with her back against the wall she could face the open door and get a view of the outside but this didn't satisfy her.

"I could've sworn I saw a camping chair out there."

"No, it's out of the question. You're staying right where you are. You'll be safer in here if more walkers wander by. And if you feel like things are startin' to go downhill, just holler and I'll come help you back to bed."

She grumbled and Dale laughed.

"What's so funny?"

"Sometimes you and Daryl look exactly alike. It's uncanny. You have the same scowl," he said which made Marianne scowl which, in turn, made Dale smile wider.

Dale left to keep an eye out for walkers. She could hear his occasional footsteps on the RV roof. T-Dog went half-heartedly through a nearby car that had already been picked over but that didn't last very long.

"Ain't you supposed to be fixing that radiator? What if they come back with Sophia and Rick wants to move on right away?" T-Dog asked as he paced by the side of the RV.

"I had it fixed yesterday." Marianne heard Dale say from above her and she set her book down on the table.

"What?" T-Dog was puzzled. "What was all that rubbing and sanding for then? That's just bullshit?"

"Yeah, that's one word. Another word would be pantomime, just for show. No one else needs to know. You hear that Marianne?"

"Loud and clear. Not one word about your bullshit."

"Pantomime." T-Dog scoffed.

"If the others know we're mobile, they'll want to mobilize and move on." She didn't know why it hadn't occurred to her that anyone in the group would want to leave without Sophia. She was usually so good at seeing the worst in people.

"So you don't think they're gonna find Sophia, that it?"

"I'm just guarding against the worst. Sooner or later, if she's not found, people will start doing math. I want to hold off the 'needs of the many versus the needs of the few' argument as long as I can."

"That is one tricky hose, huh?" From that statement Marianne knew T-Dog agreed with what Dale was doing and so did she. There was no way they were going to abandon a twelve year old, especially not with the way the world was now.

"Very," Dale said. She could hear the smile in his voice.

A few hours and too many games of solitaire later Marianne had migrated to the RV steps against Dale's wishes. The pain in her head felt distant but she wasn't too groggy, having only taken half a pill when yesterday she'd taken two. She wanted to keep as much of her wits about her as she could under the circumstance.

Dale had moved on from keeping a lookout to tinkering with the cars around them. The pile of spare parts was growing by the hour.

"Shouldn't they be back by now?" T-Dog asked Dale.

"Oh, it's still light. Let's not worry just yet."

"They'll want to cover as much ground as they can today," Marianne said.

"How are you two feeling?"

"Could be better," Marianne answered but T-Dog only vaguely nodded.

"T-Dog? I asked you how you were feeling just now. Please don't blow that question off."

"It really, really hurts. It's throbbing something awful."

Dale took a look at T-Dog's arm and the man cried out in pain.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Listen, your veins are very discolored. You got a hell of an infection there. You could die from blood poisoning."

T-Dog laughed. "Wouldn't that be the way? World gone to hell, the dead risen up to eat the living and Theodore Douglas gets done in by a cut on his arm."

"Yeah, that would be—that would be stupid. I've been saying since yesterday, we've got to, we've got to get you some antibiotics."

"Dale, you haven't been sayin' that to me. I didn't know his arm was that bad. I've got some on me right now. It's Merle's. Daryl gave them to me yesterday."

"Do you really?"

"No, I don't. I was just sayin' that to make y'all feel better through the power of positive thinking." She huffed. "Of course I do. The pills are on the bed. Give him some for pain too, while you're at it."

"Marianne."

"What?"

"I think you're my new best friend," T-Dog said.

* * *

Marianne was more than a little disappointed when they didn't come back with Sophia and more than a little shocked when Daryl told her Carl was shot.

"Shot? But by who?"

"I dunno." He shrugged a shoulder. "A stranger. Ain't you supposed to be in bed? And why did you take off your bandages?" He asked, referring to the strips of cloth from the cut up wife beater.

"I heal fast," she said as a matter of fact.

"Uh huh, sure you do. Are you bein' a dumbass again?"

"No, and stop callin' me that."

"Whatever… dumbass."

The siblings migrated to where the rest of the group was and started a discussion on what to do next. It was suggested they pack up and leave for the Greene farm before dark.

Carol shook her head. "I won't do it. We can't just leave."

"Carol, the group is split. We're scattered and weak," Dale argued.

"What if she comes back and we're not here?" Carol asked, looking around at them all one by one. "It could happen."

"If Sophia found her way back and we were gone, that would be awful," Andrea said and Marianne nodded her head in agreement. She could only imagine what the girl would think if she found herself abandoned by the group, let alone her mother.

"Then we'll stay. At least some of us," Marianne said.

"Okay. We got to plan for this. I say tomorrow morning is soon enough to pull up stakes. Give us a chance to rig a big sign, leave her some supplies." Carol looked at Daryl gratefully. "I'll hold here tonight, stay with the RV."

"If the RV is staying, I am too," Dale said, changing his tune about leaving.

"Thank you. Thank you both," Carol said.

"I'm not goin' either," Marianne stated, crossing her arms.

"Me too." Andrea half raised her hand.

"No, Marianne. You need to get that head of yours looked at. Glenn will take you and T-Dog to the farm. Use Carol's Cherokee."

"Me? Why is it always me?" Glenn asked.

And at the same time Marianne said, "No way. My head'll last another night."

"Glenn, you have to find this farm, reconnect with our people and see what's going on. But most important, the two of them need medical attention," Dale said in a no nonsense voice. "And Marianne, you've got a head wound for crying out loud. You were unconscious. There isn't a question of whether or not you're staying. If it was my decision you wouldn't even be walking around right now."

"I need to stay. I can't leave Sophia." Not again.

Carol put a hand on her arm. "It's okay."

But it wasn't and it wouldn't be until Sophia was back, safe in her mother's arms.

* * *

 **A/N: I know not a lot happened in this chapter and the next one is a little slow too. That's why I wanted a double update. But I promise it'll pick up.**


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

"That's the turn. That's the turn," Marianne said hurriedly as she pointed at the Greene mailbox. Glenn slammed on the brakes. "I told you, you were goin' too fast."

"Sorry."

By the time they pulled up to the house Marianne was ready to sleep. All three of them got out of the car and made their way towards the picturesque white farmhouse. Marianne was sure it looked even more perfect during the day. Soft yellow light glowed in the first floor windows signaling that people were inside but they all stopped at the steps to the wraparound porch, unsure of how to proceed.

"So do we ring the bell?" Glenn asked. "I mean it looks like people live here."

"Do they even have a door bell? We should just knock." Marianne readjusted the bag on her shoulder. She looked down and frowned at the sight of large blood drops on the red brick steps.

"We're past this kind of stuff, aren't we? Having to be considerate." T-Dog looked as tired as Marianne felt.

"We're not barbarians," she said as they walked up the steps. "We'll knock."

"Did you close the gate up the road when you drove in?" A woman's voice came from their right and Marianne looked into the shadows and saw her sitting on a rocking chair.

"Uh, hi. Yes, we closed it. Did the latch and everything," Glenn said. The woman leaned forward and they could see her face better. "Hello. Nice to see you again. We, uh, met before briefly."

Marianne studied Glenn's face and then looked at the pretty brown haired woman. Someone was developing a crush, much to her amusement.

"Look, we came to help. There anything we can do?" T-Dog asked.

The woman stood up and took a few steps closer to them. She looked at Marianne's face and then spotted the bloody makeshift bandage on T-Dog's arm.

"It's not a bite. I cut myself pretty bad though."

"Both of y'all look pretty banged up. We'll have that looked at." She motioned towards T-Dog's arm. "I'll tell them you're here."

"We have some antibiotics and painkillers," Marianne said, digging through her bag for the pill bottles. "He's already had some but if Carl needs 'em."

"Come on inside. I'll make you something to eat." The woman opened the screen door and they all went into the house.

The inside was just as Marianne had pictured it would be with the old furniture, wood floors, and the pictures on the white walls. The young woman, whose name she found out was Maggie, led them to the bedroom Carl was in. The boy was almost as white as the sheets and he looked so vulnerable. A white haired man in suspenders was sitting on the bed checking Carl's blood pressure. His parents sat in chairs on the other side looking worried sick. Marianne felt uncomfortable, like she was intruding on something private and hung back in the doorway with Maggie.

Glenn took off his hat. "Hey," he said softly. Rick said 'hey' back. "Um, we're here, okay?"

"Thank you," Lori said.

"Whatever you need." T-Dog nodded and the three of them, plus Maggie, started to leave the room when Marianne paused, remembering something.

"Uh, if Carl needs blood, I'm O negative. Haven't done much donating in my life but I guess now's the best time as any." Rick and Lori looked at her hopefully.

The old man nodded. "I might need to take you up on that offer."

"But you're head," Rick said, frown lines appearing on his forehead.

"I'm fine. Don't worry about me."

"Thank you," Lori said again. Marianne nodded at the anxious parents.

Maggie led them to the dining room where Marianne and T-Dog sat down. A blonde woman, who introduced herself as Patricia, came in with supplies to clean and stitch up T-Dog's arm.

"Check her head first." T-Dog pointed at Marianne.

"Well, aren't you the gentleman," Patricia said.

"Nah, stitch him up first. His cut is way bigger than mine."

"What happened to your head?" Maggie asked.

"Got into a fight with a rock and lost. The bruise is a different story."

Patricia took a look at her wound while Maggie set up everything Patricia needed.

"It's not too deep. It must not have been a very sharp rock. You're lucky you didn't crack your skull." Marianne flinched as the woman examined it. "You'll need a couple of stitches. We won't even have to shave the hair around it."

Patricia changed gloves and moved on to T-Dog. Maggie had to hold down his arm while Patricia worked carefully but efficiently on it. He was breathing heavily and grunting in pain.

"You should've taken another painkiller," Marianne said.

"You didn't."

"I only need two stitches. She'll be finished before I even know she started." Marianne was glad that she wouldn't be able to see the needle as Patricia worked on her head.

"You got here right in time." Patricia said as she was nearing the last few stitches. "This couldn't go untreated much longer. Merle Dixon. Is that your friend with the antibiotics?"

"My brother. He's not around anymore."

"Not sure I'd call him a friend."

"He is today. This doxycycline might have just saved your life. You know what Merle was takin' it for?"

"You really don't want to know. I sure didn't."

"What was it?" Glenn asked. He sounded interested despite Marianne's warning.

"The clap."

The interest in Glenn's face fell away. He glanced furtively at Maggie, looking embarrassed by the answer. He probably wished he hadn't asked.

"I'd say Merle Dixon's clap was the best thing to ever happen to you," Patricia told T-Dog, whose face was contorted by pain.

* * *

Daryl pointed his flashlight at face of the woman walking beside him and scoffed.

"You got that look on your face same as everybody else. What the hell's wrong with you people? We just started looking."

"Well, do you think we'll find her?" Andrea asked, sounding skeptical that he believed they'd really find Sophia.

"It ain't the mountains of Tibet. It's Georgia. She could be holed up in a farmhouse somewhere. People get lost and they survive. It happens all the time." Daryl swept the light across the ground in front of him keeping an eye out for signs of Sophia.

"She's only twelve."

"Hell, I was younger than her and I got lost. Nine days in the woods eating berries, wiping my ass with poison oak."

"They found you?" Andrea asked.

Daryl shook his head. "My old man was off on a bender with Marianne's mom. Merle was doing another stint in juvie. Didn't even know I was gone. I made my way back though. Went straight to the kitchen and made myself a sandwich. No worse for wear. Except my ass itched somethin' awful."

Andrea snorted and tried to smother her amusement. "I'm sorry. That is a terrible story."

Andrea laughed anyways and Daryl joined her. "Only difference is Sophia's got people looking for her. I call that an advantage."

"You said 'Marianne's mom,' so is she your half sister?"

"Yeah, what about it?"

"Nothing." Andrea shrugged. "You two seem close. It must be nice."

Daryl guessed this turn in the conversation had something to do with Amy.

"Her mom died when she was young. Our dad couldn't be bothered and it's not like Merle was around much. For awhile it was just the two of us." He knew what it was like to be left behind by an older brother and had vowed to himself he'd never do that to her.

 _Daryl accidently slammed the front door when he came home._

" _Boy, get in here." He sighed and followed his dad's voice, waiting to get yelled at. There was a little girl with the biggest blue eyes sitting at their tiny dining room table._

" _Who's this?"_

" _Your sister."His dad opened another beer._

" _I don't have a sister."_

" _You do now."_

 _Her eyes were shining with the silent tears that ran down her face and rolled right off her cheeks, making two damp spots on the front of her dress. He stared at her and she met his gaze straight on and unafraid. She was just sad._

" _Why's she crying?"_

" _Her mom's dead. You think I have her here because I want her? I don't need one more mouth to feed."_

 _He glared at the back of his dad's head. It's not like he went out of his way to feed him._

" _You hungry?"Daryl asked her quietly. She nodded her small head and looked up at him hopefully. "Alright, I'll make you a sandwich." The little girl smiled at him. "What's your name?" he asked her as he took out two slices of bread._

" _Marianne."_

" _Marianne?" She nodded. "That's a big name for a little thing like you. Mind if I call you Annie?"_

" _No, don't." She paused. Another tear ran down her face and she wiped it away. "My mom calls me that."_

' _Calls' and not 'called.' Daryl felt a tug on his heart. Merle would tell him he was soft but he wasn't here right now._

" _Alright, Marianne it is."_

* * *

Marianne was sitting at the dining room table again having finished giving all of the blood Hershel would let her. There was only so much her blood could do for Carl now. She picked up a glass of orange juice with shaky hands and tried not to spill it.

"You look like crap."

"Thanks, T. So do you." She took a small sip of juice.

"But what you did, that was cool." T-Dog nodded approvingly.

"I hope it helps."

"It will."

Patricia rushed past the dining room wheeling a large metal surgical table.

"They must be doin' the surgery," Marianne said.

"But Shane and Otis aren't back yet."

"Maybe they don't have a choice. Maybe he's gotten worse." Carl couldn't die, not with Sophia missing. They couldn't lose two children in the span of a couple of days. Marianne didn't think the group would survive after that. Rick would be devastated and they'd fall apart. She was smart enough to know that he was the one holding them together, even if the others hadn't quite realized that yet.

She knew she didn't have a way to help anymore but she couldn't just sit there doing nothing. She slowly stood up, grabbed her orange juice and went to sit on the porch to keep a look out for Otis and Shane.

Seconds after she sat down she spotted headlights in the distance. "They're here!" She yelled as she got up too fast and almost tipped over, spilling half of her orange juice across the porch but she didn't care. Marianne went as fast as she could into the house. "They're back!"

The blue truck pulled up to the house. Hershel, Rick and Lori ran past her, onto the porch and then into the yard to meet Otis and Shane. Glenn, T-Dog, and Maggie joined her on the porch.

The driver side door swung open and Shane got out of the truck. He was sweaty and breathing hard. Hershel and Glenn each took a bag from the exhausted man.

Hershel looked at the empty truck. "Otis?"

"No." Shane shook his head. There was a pause as it sunk in that he was dead.

"We say nothing to Patricia. Not 'til after. I need her." Hershel and Glenn went running into the house with the supplies.

Marianne stayed outside. Rick and Lori sat down on the porch steps together. Shane remained by the truck, sitting on the ground in front of it. T-Dog sat in the rocking chair only after offering it to Marianne, who declined and sat on the porch railing across from him instead and leaned against one of the posts.

She didn't know how long they all waited but eventually Hershel came out, followed by Maggie and Glenn. Everyone stood up, eager to hear the news.

"He seems to have stabilized," Hershel said. Rick let out a huge sigh of relief and hugged Hershel.

"I don't have words," Lori said tearfully.

"I don't either. Wish I did. How do I tell Patricia about Otis?" The atmosphere suddenly went from happy to uncomfortable.

"You go to Carl," Rick told Lori. "I'll go with Hershel."

Everyone except Shane went inside. Marianne could easily hear Patricia's wailing from the kitchen while sitting in the living room. Her head felt like it would float away any minute now and as the minutes passed she thought it really would.

Patricia's crying was subsiding. It had moved from the kitchen to upstairs. Rick walked in, coming in the direction of Carl's room.

"How are you?" Rick asked, looking dog-tired.

"I'll live. How's Carl doin'?" Her voice sounded so distant.

"He'll live."

"That's good to hear."

"He'll be bed ridden for awhile."

"He'll love that, a kid his age. I'm supposed to be stuck in here for a day and I'm already goin' stir crazy."

"'Supposed to' being the key phrase here."

"I never promised I would."

"Don't push yourself too hard." A shadow of concern crossed Rick's face. It was strange having someone besides Daryl worry about her.

"I won't. This time I don't have to account for the wrath of Merle." It was supposed to be a joke but she made herself sad. She bit her lip and looked away from Rick.

"Thank you."

Marianne didn't get a chance to say anything before he left to be with his son again but she probably wouldn't have anyways. She stretched out on the sofa the Greene's had graciously offered to her for what was left of the night. It was late and she could barely keep her eyes open. As soon as she closed them, she fell asleep.

* * *

 **A/N: Writing has been slow going, even slower than when I last updated. Well, I'm writing but it's stuff for season 3 and not the chapter I need to write next but I've been having fun thinking about what would happen with Merle showing up and a bunch of other stuff I'm impatient to get to.**

 **Thank you for continuing to read. I know there are other things you could be doing so I really appreciate it.**


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

It was either the smell of breakfast or a bad dream that woke her up. She jerked awake, momentarily confused that she was in a house sleeping on a couch. During the night someone had put a light blanket over her but now it was too hot for it so she pushed it aside as she groggily sat up. She stretched and wondered if anybody had ibuprofen or aspirin. The few hours of sleep had done wonders but, unsurprisingly, her head still hurt.

After being offered breakfast and eating it, she helped clean up the plates and the kitchen. It was the least she could do after their hospitality.

Against Hershel's advice, she stubbornly helped collect rocks for Otis' funeral with Hershel's people, T-Dog, Glenn, and Shane. T-Dog would only let her pick up small rocks. When she reached for a big one he always beat her to it. She finally managed to pick one up when she heard the roar of a motorcycle.

They looked up to watch the rest of the group drive up the house. Marianne dropped her rock in a wheelbarrow and smiled at the sight of her brother. After Merle's errand gone wrong, she had been a little anxious to be separated from him.

Everyone gathered in front of the house, the general mood being they were happy to be back together. A few people exchanged hugs. Brother and sister, unaccustomed to physical displays of affection, simply stood next to each other.

"You look worse than when you left the highway. How is that even possible?" Daryl looked frustrated.

"Carl needed blood so I gave him some."

"With you hurt?"

"I'm an adult, Daryl. I needed to do something. I couldn't help…" Marianne trailed off. She couldn't bring herself say it out loud but Daryl seemed to understand.

"Let me see your head." She turned around and she could feel Daryl gently pulling aside some hair. He grunted in approval.

"Too bad you won't be able'ta show off your kickass new scar," he joked.

"That's exactly what I was worried about."

It wasn't long before it was time for Otis' funeral. Hershel's people and the group stood in a half circle next to a large pile of rocks that stood in place of Otis' grave since his body couldn't be retrieved. One by one, they each put a rock on top of the pile. Hershel began a prayer for Otis.

Marianne wondered what her mother's funeral had been like. She couldn't even remember if she had attended. Her grandparents were dead. Her mother was an only child and didn't have any family as far as she knew. It's how she had ended up with her dad, the awful man.

"We thank you, God, for the peace he enjoys in your embrace. He died as he lived, in grace." Hershel finished his speech.

Her mom hadn't lived in grace. In fact, from what she was told, and by some people's standards, she'd lived in sin. It was how she came to exist. Marianne felt sorry for her, a single mother working two jobs but barely making ends meet, who couldn't even afford to go to the hospital and ended up dead because of it.

Hershel asked Shane to say a few words about Otis, but Shane declined looking uncomfortable with the idea.

"You were the last one with him. You shared his final moments. Please. I need to hear. I need to know his death had meaning," Patricia pleaded.

Shane looked tragically comical, in Otis' overalls and shirt that were far too big for him, trying to find the words to talk about a man's gruesome end but, after a short pause, he managed to start. It was a nice speech, a little too nice. Marianne didn't know whether to contribute that to the tendency for people to not speak ill of the dead or that there was something more to his story, but it seemed to give some comfort to Patricia and she decided that that was what counted.

* * *

"How long has this girl been lost?" Hershel asked.

"This'll be day three," Rick answered.

Maggie walked up to the car that the two men plus Marianne, Daryl, Andrea, and Shane were standing around. She unrolled a large map on the hood and placed rocks on it to hold it down. "County survey map. Shows terrain and elevations."

"This is perfect. We can finally get this thing organized," Rick said. "We'll grid the whole area, start searching in teams."

"Not you. Not today. You gave three units of blood. You wouldn't be hiking five minutes in this heat before passing out," Hershel said and then looked across the hood at Shane. "And your ankle, push it now, you'll be laid up a month. No good to anybody." He looked at Marianne. "And you not only gave blood, you've got stitches in your head. And against my recommendation, you haven't been resting." He was right but Marianne looked at him like she'd done nothing wrong.

"Guess it's just me," Daryl said. "I'm gonna head back to the creek, work my way from there."

"I can still be useful. I'll drive up to the interstate, see if Sophia wandered back," Shane said.

"I'll go with you." Marianne ignored the stern look Hershel gave her. She didn't want to be around Shane but since she couldn't trek through the woods looking for Sophia, this was almost the next best thing.

"Alright, tomorrow then. We'll start doin' this right," Rick said.

"That means we can't have our people out there with just knives. They need the gun training we've been promising them," Shane said and Rick nodded.

"I prefer you not carrying guns on my property. We've managed so far without turning this into an armed camp."

"With all due respect, you get a crowd of those things wandering in here..." Shane made a good point. The farm had survived up to this point in time but the large group of walkers on the highway proved it was only a matter of time before a herd passed by and possibly through the farm.

"Look, we're guests here. This is your property and we _will_ respect that." Rick gave a pointed look at Shane. He placed his Colt on the hood of the car and Shane followed suit with his own gun but didn't look too pleased about it. "First things first— set camp, find Sophia."

"I hate to be the one to ask, but somebody's got to." Shane was getting pissy. That was Marianne's cue to leave. She walked away but was still able to hear what Shane asked. What if Sophia was bit? The thought had crossed her mind a couple of times only to be stamped out of existence. They'd find Sophia and she would be just fine.

She walked over to Glenn, who was messing around with a tent pole.

"Need help?"

"No, I got it," Glenn said, looking slightly perplexed at the tent pole in his hand.

"Let me rephrase that. I'm goin' to help."

"Are you sure you're okay to—"

"I'm not made of glass. Besides, if I don't do anything useful I'm goin' to go crazy. You don't want to see that, do you?" Marianne joked.

"No, uh, that sounds unpleasant." Sometimes he took things too literally.

"Glenn?"

"Yeah?"

"That was a joke," she explained. "I do tend to make one every now and then."

Both of them were putting the rest of poles together when Lori called Glenn over. She was wrangling with a larger tent and needed help. Marianne was working on pushing a second pole into place when Carol came over and held the tent steady for her.

"Me and Shane are goin' to the highway later. I'm guessin' you wanna come."

"I do. I really do."

Marianne gave Carol half a smile and moved onto the next tent and then to another. She was hammering stakes into the ground when she looked up to see Glenn spying on someone or something with Shane's binoculars. Her best bet was on Maggie. She chuckled when she saw Lori startle him.

"Here's your list. And, um, there's one other item. I wrote it down separately. It's personal. If we could be real discreet about that, okay?"

Marianne thought Lori had seen her nearby but apparently not. So much for being discreet.

"Uh, what is it?" Marianne hammered a little faster and louder.

"Kind of missing the point of the whole discreet thing, Glenn."

"Oh, right. Um… I just need to know where to find it." Marianne stood up; maybe they'd see her now. Nope. Didn't work.

"Try the feminine hygiene section." Marianne sighed and went to put the hammer away. Lori smiled at her as she walked by.

They had finished setting up all of the tents and were moving on to setting up the rest of the camp when T-Dog and Dale came over to tell them there was a walker stuck in a well.

* * *

Dale kept the flashlight pointed into the well as Andrea, T-Dog, Glenn, Marianne, Lori, Maggie and Shane stood around it, looking down at the slimy walker clawing fruitlessly at the stone wall.

"We got to get it out," Shane said.

"Easy. Put a bullet in its head," T-Dog suggested. "I'll get a rope."

"Whoa, whoa, guys. No," Maggie said.

"Why not?" Glenn asked. "It's a good plan."

"It's a stupid plan. If that thing hasn't contaminated the water yet, blowing its brains out will finish the job," Andrea said.

"As far as I'm concerned, it's already contaminated. Look at it, it's not just bloated, there's blood leakin' out of its face." Marianne looked distastefully down at the walker.

Shane nodded. "Andrea's right. Can't risk contaminating it even more."

"So it has to come out alive?" T-Dog asked.

"How do we do that?" Glenn asked.

Marianne crossed her arms. "I think ya'll are missing the point here. Even if we manage to get it out we're still not drinkin' that water."

"She's right," Lori said. "We can't risk it."

"But we can't just leave it there. Can we?" Glenn took his hat off and rubbed his forehead.

Shane looked at Maggie. "You decide. This is your family's farm."

"I say we try to get out."

"Alright then. So here's how we're gonna do this," Shane said.

Marianne didn't think it was the greatest plan. She thought it'd be better just to shoot the thing. Rope, fishing line, and a canned ham that no one was eager to eat were retrieved. They tied the ham up at the end of the fishing line, used fishing hooks to secure it, and tied a lasso knot at one end of the rope. Dale dangled the ham in front of the walker while Shane waited to slip the rope around it. The walker acted like the ham didn't exist.

"He's not going for it," Dale said.

T-Dog was pointing the flashlight down the well. "Maybe 'cause a canned ham don't kick and scream when you try to eat it."

"We need live bait." Andrea looked at Glenn who was standing next to her and his face fell when he realized what she was implying.

"No. He's not doin' it," Marianne said. "What the hell is wrong with you?" She glared at Andrea, but no one stepped up to agree with her. "Am I the only sane one around here?" She looked around at them all. "We're on a farm people. Can't you spare a chicken and a basket?" she asked Maggie. Glenn looked gratefully at Marianne.

"Now that's not a bad idea," Dale said.

"It's better than putting Glenn's life on the line, literally," Lori said.

Maggie commandeered a chicken, which they ended up tying up in a net so the walker could not only hear it, but see it too. They lowered the chicken into the well and the walker excitedly reached up for it. It took some maneuvering but Shane managed to slip the rope onto it and they slowly started to pull it up.

"Almost there. Come on, pull. Keep it coming," T-Dog directed. The walker's head appeared from out of the well. "Nice and easy. Just a little more." Half of its body was soon out. "Come on, almost there." T-Dog took a step back, covering his nose. "It's stuck! Come on."

Andrea, Shane, Dale, and Glenn pulled even harder. The walker was snarling and incensed. All of a sudden, it ripped in two, guts spilled onto the ground and the bottom half fell back into the well. The walker, undeterred by its weight loss, flailed on the ground reaching out for the nearest human.

"Good thing we didn't do anything stupid like shoot it," T-Dog said.

* * *

Marianne was grateful Andrea volunteered to come to the highway too. She sat in the front with Shane, who was driving, and Marianne sat in the back with Carol. The car ride was silent and as soon as they arrived Carol went straight to the car that had the sign and supplies.

She stood on the hood of a nearby car, giving Carol some space and keeping an eye out for walkers and Sophia, although deep down she knew it was unlikely. It was easy for a kid to get lost when all the trees looked the same to them. She'd be huddled in the woods somewhere or, with any luck, in a farmhouse or barn.

Shane and Andrea loitered by the car they had come in and held a brief conversation in low voices, something about guns and shooting practice, before leaning on a car across from Carol.

A little over an hour had passed when Andrea stood next to the grieving mother and put a hand on her back, trying to comfort her.

"We'll come again tomorrow. You know there's always the chance—"

"Don't. I really don't need to hear it anymore, Andrea. Save the thoughts and prayers," Carol said and Andrea walked away.

"You never—" Shane started but Marianne cut him off.

"Leave it Shane." He shot her look before following after Andrea.

"You want me to take a walk?" Marianne asked but Carol shook her head, a few tears running down her face.

"I haven't thanked you yet, for what you did."

"There's nothin' to thank me for." Marianne turned her back on Carol under the pretense of looking down the other direction of the highway.

"Me and you have more in common than people might think," Carol said suddenly. Marianne didn't like where this was headed. There was a long pause. "Who was it?"

"No one," she lied, but then she realized, just by already knowing what Carol was talking about, she had given herself away. Marianne shifted her weight between her legs looking everywhere but at Carol and began to chew her bottom lip. She was relieved when Carol decided not to take the conversation any further.

Andrea and Shane returned from who knows where and they drove back to the farm. Marianne watched the tree as they whizzed by. The drive was silent again and a dismal mood hung over them.

When they got back to the farm, she sat in camping chair by the fire. Everyone was busy around her. Her head hurt more than it would have if she had rested like Hershel told her to, but she didn't regret not laying down all day.

When Daryl came back he walked right by everyone without a glance and went into the RV. She was relieved to see him. She waited for him to come out and after a couple of minutes he walked out of the RV and over to Marianne, who stood up ready to hear any news.

"Find anything?"

"Yeah, a rundown old house. Someone was sleeping in the pantry, someone Sophia's size. And there was a can of sardines opened not too long ago."

She nodded. "That's something then. She's alive."

Night descended on them and Marianne had a quick dinner around the main campfire with Daryl and Glenn. Daryl didn't talk. Glenn wouldn't stop talking but when Marianne asked him how the pharmacy run went he got nervous and gave her a vague answer and she wondered if something had happened between him and Maggie.

She was going to her tent to turn in for the night when, in the distance, she saw a woman walking away from the camp and into the dark. It took her a few seconds to recognize her and it took her less than a second to come to a decision. She followed Lori. Marianne didn't care that they were on a farm surrounded by fences, it still wasn't safe.

Lori was crouched on the ground with her head down and she was able to sneak up on her without even trying. "You can't wander off in the dark. It's a good way to get yourself killed." Lori nearly jumped out of her skin. "See? I could've been a walker."

"There are fences everywhere."

"Fences break. Do you even have a knife?" Lori shook her head and Marianne let out a sound of frustrated disbelief. "You've gotta be kidding me."

"I came out here for some privacy." Lori was starting to sound aggravated.

"Privacy isn't worth your life. But I'll turn around, watch your back for ya, and you can do whatever it is that's so secret." Marianne saw Lori trying to hide something long, skinny and white in her hand. It suddenly clicked. She had wanted something from the feminine hygiene section Glenn hadn't recognized. She quickly turned around, pretending she hadn't seen it but it was too late.

"Don't tell Rick."

* * *

 **A/N:** **Thank you for continuing to read and thank you to Guest for the review. I'm glad you're enjoying it.**

 **Progress on those pesky chapters are slow but it's happening. It's been a little ridiculous. My brain keeps focusing on later seasons and I've been writing a few scenes here and there for chapters I won't get to in awhile.**


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Thank you for the follows and the favorites.**

Disclaimer: I do not own the Walking Dead.

* * *

 **Chapter 10**

Marianne was eating breakfast when she realized she hadn't visited Carl yet and that he must be bored out of his mind cooped up in the house. She didn't like kids but she'd make an exception for him. She passed Beth and Patricia on the way to his room and greeted them with a nod. Beth gave her a shy smile.

The door was open but she knocked anyways before entering. "Morning, sheriff."

Carl looked pleased at the name and adjusted the hat on his head. It was a little stuffy in the room, even with the window open, but he kept it on.

"Thought you might want some company. I brought these." She held up a well worn deck of cards. "What do you want to play?"

"Can you teach me poker?" Carl asked really fast.

Marianne was tempted. "I don't think your mom would like that. How about Go Fish? It used to be my favorite."

"Okay." He sounded a little disappointed.

She dealt out the cards and they started playing. Marianne let him win the first game.

"I must be outta practice," she said while Carl grinned in victory.

"Can we play again?" She nodded and began shuffling the cards.

"Dad told me you fell and hit your head trying to help Sophia."

Her shuffle faltered. "Yep, got the stitches to prove it."

"Can I see?" he asked eagerly.

"Sure." She set the cards on the bedside table, knelt down next to the bed and turned around. She gently parted her hair.

"Whoa, cool."

"But it can't beat yours kid."

"I'll have a scar like my dad."

"I bet yours is bigger than his." Carl nodded enthusiastically in agreement.

Marianne won the second game and they were starting the third when she heard footsteps coming down the hallway and towards the bedroom. She turned around to see Rick appear in the doorway. He looked a little taken aback by her presence.

"Dad! We're playing Go Fish."

"I can see that." Rick smiled at his son, then put his hands on his hips and looked at Marianne. "In a few minutes, we're going over the search grid, if you want to join us."

Marianne nodded. "I'll head out there right now." She folded up her cards and Carl complained that their game wasn't finished. "We'll do a rematch later."

Carl made her promise they'd play again and she packed up the cards. She started to leave but it looked like Rick was about to say something to her so she paused. Whatever it was, he seemed to change his mind and Marianne left the room, not giving it a second thought.

* * *

"Alright, everyone's getting new search grids today," Rick said to Marianne's left as she smoothed out a curling corner of the map. "If she made it as far as the farmhouse Daryl found, she might have gone further east then we've been so far."

"I'd like to help." Jimmy, the teenage boy she hadn't talked to ever, came up from behind her. "I know the area pretty well and stuff."

"Hershel's okay with this?" Rick asked.

"Yeah. He said I should ask you."

"Alright then. Thanks."

"Nothing about what Daryl found screams Sophia to me. Anyone could've been holed up in that farmhouse." She was starting to hate Shane's voice.

"Anybody includes her, right?" Andrea pointed out.

"Whoever slept in that cupboard was no bigger than yea-high." Daryl held out a hand at about the height of Sophia.

"Maybe we'll pick up her trail again," Rick said.

"No maybe about it. I'm gonna borrow a horse, head up to this ridge right here. Take a bird's-eye view of the whole grid. If she's up there, I'll spot her," Daryl said as Dale came up beside him and placed the gun bag on the hood.

"Good idea," T-Dog said and then mentioned Daryl's chupacabra story, which Marianne still couldn't believe was one of the first thing's he told about himself to everyone. Daryl wasn't good on first impressions.

"So you believe in a blood-sucking dog?" asked Rick.

"Do you believe dead people walkin' around?" Daryl countered.

Jimmy reached for the rifle lying on the hood in front of Rick.

"Hey, hey. Ever fire one before?" Rick took it away from the boy.

"Well, if I'm going out I want one."

"Yeah, and people in hell want slurpees." Daryl shouldered his crossbow and walked away.

Marianne felt frustrated when Rick showed the area he wanted Andrea and T-Dog to search and then where he and Shane were going. Everyone left and it was just her and Rick. She was studying the map, looking at the penciled little Xs that marked where Sophia ran off of the highway, the spot where they hid in the creek, and the house Daryl had found.

"I know how you feel," Rick said, standing beside her.

"I'm sure you don't."

"You feel like you failed her but you didn't. You did everything—"

"I don't wanna hear it. I know what I did and I know it could've gone different. I made a choice and it was the wrong one."

She began to walk away but Rick placed a hand on her arm, trying to stop her from going. She pulled away from him. "Don't touch me. Ever." Marianne looked back at him while walking to her tent. He looked sorry but she didn't care.

* * *

She waited for both search parties to leave before she revealed to Lori she was going to the highway. She made sure Dale wasn't around because she didn't want to hear him gripe about her going alone.

"Does Rick know?" Lori asked.

"Last time I checked he wasn't my babysitter." Marianne opened the door of the car they had picked up on the highway, got in, and drove away.

The supplies were still intact when she arrived. She kicked the car tire and resisted the urge to throw the canned peaches at a windshield. She couldn't go back to the farm, not yet, so she decided she'd stay for a couple of hours, poke around and hope for a miracle.

She needed something to do and the crashed cars hadn't been searched through yet. Some of the doors and trunks were bent out of shape and no one had bothered with them. She selected a blue car that looked promising. As she pried open the trunk, it made a wrenching noise and she cringed at how loud it was. Marianne took a few minutes to cautiously look around her but nothing showed up. She turned her attention back to the trunk and liked what she saw. It looked as if someone had packed up their entire pantry. Food was stuffed in three large reusable grocery bags that had 'Save the Earth' printed on the handles.

Next to the groceries was a dark purple suitcase. Marianne moved the food into her car before unzipping it. What she found inside wasn't as exciting. It was mostly clothes. Marianne picked out a few tank tops and a toiletries bag she'd sort through later.

She had moved on to a second car when she heard a twig snap. She whipped her head in the direction of the sound and spotted movement between the trees. She unsheathed her knife and a walker appeared. And then another. And another. She ducked down behind the car but it was too late. The first one had already seen her and the others followed its example. She could hear them getting worked up over their impending meal.

Marianne peeked at them through the car windows and took a sharp intake of breath. More of them than she had realized were spilling out of the woods. She counted, mouthing each number.

"Nine," she couldn't help but whisper. And they were all headed her way.

She thought about making a run for the car but she didn't want to lead the walkers in the direction of the farm. They were already on the opposite side of the highway from the Greenes' and she wanted it to stay that way.

Marianne let the walkers get a good look at her before taking off down the highway. Instead of struggling up the incline to the road they veered off to the side, after her. She had to let them get too close for comfort if all of them were going to successfully follow her into the woods without losing her trail too early and wandering off in directions she didn't want them to.

She entered the woods and made sure they were following before she took off again, making as much noise as possible. She ran through a small clearing and stopped at the other side, waiting for the walkers to appear. They did and when they saw her she turned and ran some more, looking for the perfect tree to climb up and hide.

She found one and scrambled up it, not bothering to look behind her because that would slow her down. And it wouldn't help anyways. They'd either see her or not. Knowing about it a few seconds earlier didn't matter.

Trying to quiet her breathing, she straddled a large branch and gripped her knife. There were some lower branches that had some leaf coverage but not enough to hide her if the walkers looked up when they were anywhere but directly underneath her.

She could tell they were almost within sight by the rustling of the bushes and grass, which was more terrifying than the dragging of feet on asphalt. The first one appeared, the one that had been in the lead from the beginning. As each one passed her by, she counted. Eight. There was one more left.

A woman in her once Sunday best appeared. She had a heel on one foot and nothing on the other. That was what must have been slowing it down. Marianne held her breath in anticipation of the walker going away but it stopped walking. The dead woman's foot was stuck in a rotten log.

It was struggling to pull it out but soon it didn't try as hard and then it quit and just stood there. Birds in the tree next to hers took off making enough noise for the walker to look up and once it did that, she was in plain sight. The walker snarled at her, now feverishly tugging to get its foot free. If the others heard it and headed back her way she was screwed.

She climbed down the tree, trying to make as little noise as possible. The walker was pulling its foot so hard skin was coming off of its ankle. As Marianne closed in to make the kill, the walker reached out for her and with a crack of wood, broke free. She dodged the lunging walker and spun around to face its back. Without hesitation she plunged the knife into its head and it crumpled to the ground.

* * *

"What happened to you?" Dale asked, leaning out of the RV.

"Nothin'." She shrugged, the evidence of her lie splattered on her shirt.

"It sure doesn't look that way."

She pointed behind her at the car. "There's, um, some stuff in the back. Food and things."

She left it at that and went to her tent to change. Good thing it was laundry day. She'd actually have something clean to wear.

She noticed Rick, Shane, Andrea, and T-Dog were around camp but her brother was nowhere to be seen. He should've been back by now and Marianne had a bad feeling about it.

After washing up as best as she could with a bucket of water she went into the house. Lori, Carol, Beth, and Patricia were already in the kitchen. She promised Carol that morning that she would help make dinner.

"You look like you've had a rough day. How were things at the highway?" Lori asked. Marianne looked up from the cake batter she was supposed to be mixing.

"Um, the same." She began stirring again. "Found some more food."

"That's great," Carol said but only half heartedly.

"I noticed you changed," Lori persisted.

"Had a little workout."

"What kind of workout?" Lori asked suspiciously.

"Cardio." After that one-worded response Lori stopped asking her questions.

She looked out the window and noticed Daryl still wasn't back. She had to do something. Marianne deliberately let go of the spoon and it clattered on the floor. All four women looked at her. Marianne briefly closed her eyes and leaned against the counter.

"Are you alright?" Patricia asked.

"I'm sorry. My head is killin' me. Do you mind if I go get some fresh air?"

"Go right ahead," Lori said.

"You sure?"

"Don't worry. We've got it handled." Carol gave her a smile.

Marianne was out of the house in a flash. She avoided the kitchen windows as she walked to her tent. She needed to pack a bag, grab a second knife and the gun she had managed to sneak into her things on the highway while Dale and T-Dog scavenged the cars more thoroughly.

She almost made a clean getaway but Glenn ran into her and saw she was wearing her backpack.

"You're going out there? You can't do that," he said incredulously.

"Oh, so are you tellin' me what I can and cannot do, now?"

"No, it's not like that. You're injured. What if you pass out or something while you're out there?"

"I'll be fine. My head barely hurts. I'm just goin' to check on Daryl. It's not like I'm riskin' my life or anything."

"But you are! What if a walker finds you?"

"I can take care of myself and I'm better off on my own. Last time, I had someone else to worry about."

"What if he found Sophia's trail and decided to follow it and that's why he's still out there?"

"Then I'll've had a nice little walk in the forest."

"I can't let you do this."

"Glenn, I swear to God, if you tell anyone I'm leaving, I will skin you alive. Something's not right. The last time I had a brother runnin' late, he ended up chained to a roof, chopped his hand off, and disappeared."

"I still don't like this. And I already told you I suck at keeping secrets."

"How about I pretend I didn't hear what I did between you and Maggie today and you pretend you didn't see me."

"Oh my God, you heard that?"

"I hear a lot of things. Now get out of my way."

Glenn reluctantly stepped aside and Marianne went to the spot that Daryl had entered the woods. It'd be easier to track him on a horse. Marianne decided to head to the ridge first, where Daryl said he was going to look. No one else seemed to have seen her because no one followed. Either that or they didn't care about her traipsing off into the forest.

She found his trail without a problem and followed it. Marianne estimated she was about halfway there when she saw him limping along, nearly dragging his crossbow on the ground.

"Daryl!" She rushed up to him.

He looked like death warmed over. His mouth was bloody but she suspected it wasn't his. Blood stained his undershirt and his over shirt was tied around his waist. He had leaves and grass sticking to his wet and muddy clothes and in his hair. He was wearing a necklace of walker ears which she promptly tore off of him. He protested. "Hush, we don't need anyone seein' those." She threw them into some bushes.

"Are you really here?"

Her forehead wrinkled. "Of course I'm here," she said. "Where are you hurt?" She would ask him what happened later.

"Arrow went through my side." Daryl pressed a hand against what she assumed was his wound and Marianne swore.

"Let's get you back. Give me your crossbow," she said, taking off her backpack to make room for it. "You're not carrying that." Daryl showed no signs of handing it over so she grabbed it from him and slung it across her back. She then hung her backpack over one shoulder.

They made slow progress. Her backpack kept slipping off so she ended hooking both straps with her right arm and carrying it that way. Daryl stubbornly refused to lean on her even though he kept stumbling. She tried her best to stay right next to him in case he fell. Daryl had gone on about how tough Merle was but he was, at the least, just as strong and he didn't seem to realize it.

She could spot the house through the trees and Marianne sighed in relief. Daryl would get help soon. He'd be okay.

The dirt path had all but disappeared and her backpack got caught in an overgrown bush. By the time she untangled herself, Daryl was already out of the woods. She jogged after him and in the distance saw four men running towards them. It looked like they were armed.

"Rick, it's just us," she called out to him after he had pointed his gun at Daryl. She cleared the trees and he looked confused to see her.

"That's the third time you've pointed that thing at my head. You gonna pull the trigger or what?" Rick lowered his gun.

She stood on Daryl's left, a couple of feet behind him. "He's hurt real bad. He needs to see Hershel."

A gunshot thundered across the farm and Daryl was on the ground before she could comprehend what had happened. When she did, she fell to her knees next to him and flung her backpack aside. Her heart was pounding hard and fast. She heard Rick yelling but she focused on her brother's head. The bullet had grazed him. He wasn't dead, but the anger inside of her kept growing.

Rick and Shane picked Daryl up.

"I was kidding."

Marianne saw Andrea and Dale running towards them. "Oh my God. Oh my God, is he dead?" Andrea asked frantically.

"Unconscious. You just grazed him," Rick told Andrea.

Marianne set her sights on the woman. "Did you do this?" Andrea looked at her. "Did you do this?"

"I thought he was a walker." Andrea was near tears.

"If it was a walker, it was one fucking walker you wasted a bullet on. And you better pray to God a herd didn't hear that gunshot." She stepped closer to Andrea. "You put all our lives in danger. You nearly killed my brother to satisfy your own ego!" Marianne shouted and nearly pushed the other woman to the ground.

"Hold on now." Dale stood between her and Andrea.

"Marianne," Rick said.

She barely registered what they were saying after that. She only knew other people were talking and getting in her way.

"You got something to prove? Well you proved that you're a selfish bitch too goddamned wrapped up in your own feelings to think about the safety of others." Andrea was backing away from her, looking terrified. "You'll say you were trying to protect us, I call bullshit. You were thinkin' about yourself." Her voice got deadly quiet. "If you're smart, which I'm beginning to doubt, you'll stay away from me."

Stunned, Andrea stopped walking and Dale stayed by her side as the rest of them continued to the house.

* * *

Marianne was sitting at the end of bed, Rick kneeling next to her studying the map rolled out on the bed while Hershel was stitching up Daryl's arrow wound. Her heartbeat had returned to normal but she felt like if she ate something she'd throw it right up.

"I found it washed up on the creek bed right there." He pointed at a spot on the map. "She must have dropped it crossing there somewhere."

"Cuts the grid almost in half," Rick said, turning to look at Shane who was sitting behind him.

"Yeah, you're welcome," Daryl said.

"How's he lookin'?" Rick asked.

"I had no idea we'd be going through the antibiotics so quickly." Hershel began washing his hands in a porcelain basin. "Any idea what happened to my horse?"

"Yeah, the one who almost killed me? If it's smart, it left the country."

"We call that one Nelly, as in Nervous Nelly. I could have told you she'd throw you if you'd bothered to ask. It's a wonder you people have survived this long."

Rick and Shane departed. Hershel cleaned and bandaged Daryl's bullet graze and left with strict instructions for him to stay in bed. The siblings were left alone.

"I ran into some walkers on the highway today." Marianne picked at some imaginary fuzz on her shirt.

"How many?"

"Nine." He sat up straighter and she held her hand up. "I led them away from the farm. Ran into the woods, lost them in there and circled back." Marianne left out certain details, like how close she had been to getting stuck up a tree with walkers clawing at the bottom. She also didn't tell him that she was worried Andrea's gunfire had undone all the work she did to lead the walkers away.

In turn, Daryl told her what had happened. Marianne thought knowing would be better but it was worse than she had imagined. He told her how he fell down the ridge and an arrow pierced his side. How he fell down a second time and woke up to a walker chewing on his boot. He even told her about eating a squirrel raw but since he didn't mention the ears, she didn't bring it up.

"I saw Merle," he said cautiously.

"How was he?" Marianne asked like it wasn't strange at all one of her brothers hallucinated the other.

"An ass, like always."

"I yelled at Andrea. I called her a selfish bitch." Daryl snorted. "And don't tell me not to be mad at her."

"I won't." There was a pause. "Why'd you come lookin' for me?"

"I felt like something bad had happened, and after everything with Merle I couldn't stand around in a kitchen baking a cake, mashing potatoes."

They talked a little bit more but Marianne was exhausted and emotionally spent. She slouched in a flowery armchair and rested her legs on the bed, gently nudging Daryl's leg with her foot a few times before he told her to quit in a gruff voice, but they both had smirks on their face.

* * *

Sleep erased the anger, the pain, and the worry from her face. His little sister almost looked happy. Even when she smiled there was still something dark in her eyes, like the happiness didn't reach her soul.

Daryl had been apprehensive about telling her about Merle and relieved when she didn't call him crazy. But he couldn't bring himself to tell her that he had seen her too, as a girl standing in the water holding Sophia's doll with a bite mark on her arm. It didn't take a whole lot to figure out what that hallucination meant.

He heard the door open and he looked behind him to see Carol coming into the room with a tray. Daryl pulled the sheets up to his chest.

"How are you feeling?"

"'Bout as good as I look."

"I brought you some dinner. You must be starving," Carol said and he glanced at the tray she had set down on the side table.

Carol leaned down and Daryl flinched. For less than a second she hesitated before kissing the side of his head. He didn't know what to think about that. He just knew it made him uncomfortable.

"Watch out, I got stitches," he said, not looking at her and messing with the sheets just so his hands had something to do.

"You need to know something." Daryl looked at her again. "You did more for my little girl today than her own Daddy ever did in his whole life."

"I didn't do anything Rick or Shane wouldn't have done." He pulled the sheets over his shoulder and up to under his chin.

"I know. You're every bit as good as them. Both of you are. Every bit." Carol left, shutting the door behind her.

* * *

 **A/N: Hey everyone! I'm so happy you're still reading and I'd really like to know what you think about the story so far.**

 **Fun fact- Marianne yelling at Andrea was the first thing I ever wrote for the character and the story. It's how I got the idea for Marianne in the first place so I was excited to finally get to this chapter.**

 **Progress is still slow. I've been getting a lot of migraines lately so that's not really helping matters at all but I'm optimistic that I'll be better soon and back to writing more than a few sentences at at time.**


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Thank you for the follows and the favorites and for continuing to read. And thank you to Hongo En for the review.**

Disclaimer: I do not own the Walking Dead.

* * *

 **Chapter 11**

"What's it like out there?" Maggie asked out of the blue. Marianne was helping her pick peaches and so far their conversation had been limited to the weather and Maggie telling her more about peaches than she ever wanted to know.

"Bad. You're living in a nightmare where you can never wake up."

"How many have you killed?"

"Too many to count, although I never really counted in the first place. Waste of time."

"And you don't feel bad about it?" Marianne wondered where these questions were coming from.

"They're not people anymore. They're dead. As far as I'm concerned I'm doin' them and the rest of the world a favor by killing them."

"So, you don't think they're sick?"

"No, I don't." Marianne told her about the CDC and it seemed to put Maggie deep in thought.

She decided to change the subject.

"So, what's goin' on between you and Glenn?" Marianne asked while Maggie handed her a peach.

"I don't know what you're talkin' about."

"I have eyes. And Glenn's not too hard to read."

Maggie looked at her. "I really don't know."

"Glenn's a good guy. He cares." She put a peach in the almost full basket. "Sometimes I think he cares too much."

They finished picking peaches and began walking back to the house. Maggie was carrying the basket and Marianne was helping herself to the fruit. They were nearly at the tents when she and Maggie saw Glenn with the binoculars. Marianne wondered what he was looking at so intently.

"I'm gonna talk to Glenn and give him the peaches," Maggie said. Marianne took this as a sign to leave and they parted ways. She headed towards Lori, who was adding some kindling to the fire.

"How're you holding up?"

Lori stood up and brushed her hands off. "Good."

"I think you're lying." Marianne put her hands on her hips. "Because in your situation, I wouldn't describe myself as 'good'."

Lori looked around them. "I'm dealing with it, okay."

"You don't have to do it alone."

Before Lori could say anything Glenn walked up and set the peaches down. He looked like he wanted to say something but he kept nervously glancing at Marianne before staring meaningfully at Lori.

"She knows Glenn."

"She knows? Oh, thank God." It looked like a weight had lifted from his shoulders. "What did Rick say?" Instead of answering him Lori bent down to stoke the fire. "You didn't tell him? But you have to. You're pregnant. Right?" He looked at Marianne for help.

"He's not wrong."

"You need vitamins, medicine, a nice pillow."

"And more food," Marianne added. "Let us help you."

Glenn grabbed some jerky out of paper bag and offered it to Lori. "You can have my share."

"Honey, I don't want your food, okay? Eat." Lori picked up a water jug. She was trying to ignore them both by keeping busy.

"Take the jerky, Lori. For the baby." Marianne grabbed the water jug out of her hands.

"You're too skinny. You have a medical condition." The expecting mother looked at Glenn and scoffed. "I'll make another run into town. Just tell me what you need."

"I need you two to be quiet about this. Please."

Glenn didn't look happy about it and Marianne knew she wasn't. The discussion between the three of them ended when Shane called Glenn over but Marianne was still there.

"I already told you I'd stay quiet but me and Glenn are involved whether you like it or not and it looks like neither of us are giving up on you." Rick was headed their way so Marianne lowered her voice even more. "And just so you know, I'd be willing to make a run for you too. If you need something, just ask."

Marianne handed the water jug back to Lori as Rick came to stand next to them.

"You didn't join us today," he said to Marianne, referring to planning the search for the day.

"Didn't think there was a point to it. I'm stuck here." She motioned at the camp.

"I talked to Hershel and he says your stitches can come out in couple of days."

"That's not news to me. And I hope we find Sophia before that happens."

"Me too." Rick nodded. "Do you want to join us for gun training?"

"Is _she_ going?"

"Yeah."

"No, I shoot just fine."

Rick sighed but left well enough alone.

* * *

Everyone that left for gun training, minus Shane and Andrea, pulled up right as Marianne began putting empty water containers in a cart for a trip to the well. T-Dog volunteered to help and while they walked he told her how the training went for everyone but conspicuously omitted a certain blonde. They reached the well and Marianne started to pump water into the first container.

"How are you doin'?" T-Dog asked.

"I'm hot."

"You know that's not what I mean." They switched places at the pump. "I bet no one's asked you that since Daryl was hurt."

"No, nobody has, but why would they? I'm not the one that got shot."

"Because the only brother you have left almost died. You nearly tore my arms off going after Andrea."

"That was you holdin' me back? I didn't hurt you, did I?" She looked at him a little worried.

"Nah, I'm okay. So, how are you?"

There was a long pause and they finished filling up the second container.

"Why should I tell you?"

T-Dog rolled his eyes. "Because I'm your friend."

"You are?" Marianne asked, really confused. That was not what she was expecting. T-Dog started to speak but she cut him off. "Daryl's always been there for me. And then he was almost gone. How do you think I felt? I'm pissed. At Andrea. At the world. At that damn horse. He's the only family I have left."

"That's not true. This group can be your family too. If you'll let us."

* * *

Marianne and Glenn were chopping firewood, a task that never seemed to end, and she wondered why they hadn't done this in the early morning while it was still relatively cool outside.

"I kind of accidently told Dale about Lori," Glenn blurted out. Marianne stared at him. "Aren't you going to say anything?"

"I guess it's a good thing you didn't promise to keep quiet today."

"What are we going to do?" Glenn asked.

"About what? Your inability to lie?" Marianne threw some split wood on the pile.

"No, about you know…"

"We'll do what we can do." She shrugged.

"That was a really unhelpful answer." He swung the axe down, chopping a log in half. "I'm almost sure you did that on purpose."

Marianne held back a laugh. "We'll watch out for her. She'll need something sooner or later and if she doesn't tell Rick then we're the only ones she'll turn to."

"Okay, that was better but still not the kind of answer I was looking for."

"You gotta take what you can get. So what's up between you and Maggie?" Glenn nearly dropped the axe in mid swing and Marianne flinched, almost sorry that she asked but the look on his face was worth it.

He was saved from answering her when Lori walked up but that meant he had to answer for something else.

"I'm sorry. I'm sor—It just came out. And it was Dale."

"It's okay. I never should have put you in that position." Lori looked at them both. "I've been thinking about what you two said, about needing help. And you're right, I do."

"Name it. Yeah." Glenn looked eager to help.

"If you're still willing to make a run into town…"

"I'm your man." Glenn said while Marianne nodded and side stepped to avoid getting hugged by Lori.

Marianne left Glenn to finish chopping the firewood while she searched for Maggie, who she found sweeping the porch.

"Do you have a hunting store in town?"

"There's one down the street from the pharmacy. Are you makin' a run?"

"Glenn and I are headed to town and I wanna see if it has any bows."

"It might. I'll go with you."

She helped Maggie saddle the horses and they all rode side by side with Marianne in the middle.

"I don't think we should split up," Marianne said. "The hunting store first and the pharmacy second?"

"Sounds like a plan," Maggie said.

After that, no one spoke as they rode to town. Although Glenn looked over at Maggie so much Marianne fell back so the two of them were next to each other but by the time they reached the hunting store Glenn still hadn't said anything.

They tied their horses up in the front. Marianne put her forehead against the glass and shielded her eyes so she could get a good look inside.

"Do you know if it's clear?" She checked to see if the door was locked and it wasn't.

"No, I haven't been in there yet."

"Let's see if we have any friends hanging around." She knocked on the window and they waited. Nothing appeared.

They entered the building and her first impression was that the place had been picked over. It wasn't a big store and Marianne walked around, her hope of finding a bow faded. It looked like someone had cleared out all of the guns and most of the other useful merchandise. She came across a small section with arrows and accessories but no bows. However, she managed to find a few hunting knives, complete with their own sheaths. One was the perfect size for Carl.

After making a circuit of the front, Marianne searched the back. The door had been kicked in and it looked even worse than the store itself. One of the shelves had been completely knocked over, creating an avalanche of shoe boxes. At least now they knew where to find a new pair of boots.

Marianne came out of the back.

"Mr. and Mrs. Fischer, Lacey, Duncan." Maggie was heatedly reciting names and Glenn looked upset. Marianne decided to ignore whatever was happening between them. She already had Lori's secret to deal with, she didn't need to get sucked into another soap opera plot line.

"The back is a mess. There are some stale donuts in the break room if anyone's interested."

As a last resort she went behind the checkout counter to look inside some floor cabinets that were up against the wall. The first one she opened had a bag of chips which she gave to Glenn but after that it was only disappointment as she opened each one to find nothing useful. She reached the last one, not holding her breath on finding anything, but when she looked inside she had to remind herself to breath. Right in front of her was a compound bow. She felt a surge of delight and for a second her heart felt lighter.

It was a display model, decked out with add-ons, including a mounted quiver. She picked it up and felt its weight. It was about the same weight and size as her old bow. She put on one of the wrist releases she'd found earlier and drew the string back, careful not to fire without an arrow. It wasn't a perfect match. She'd have to adjust the draw length and weight, and then there was the fact that she'd have to break it in. She'd ask Hershel if she could borrow some hay bales to shoot.

"You found one?" Marianne smiled at Glenn.

"You look like a kid on Christmas morning," Maggie said.

"Well, that's a first for me. Christmas wasn't big in my house growing up."

"Really?" Glenn asked.

"Yep, Santa didn't stop by."

"That's kind of sad," Maggie said.

"Ain't it though?" Marianne finished packing everything she was taking. "I'm done here. Let's head to the pharmacy."

They walked their horses down the road and tied them up again. Marianne kept her bow with her, not having realized until now how much she missed the feel of holding one in her hands. Marianne gave the pharmacy a quick once over when she first entered.

"Why is the party section wiped out? Didn't think there was much to celebrate at the end of the world."

Glenn looked at the shelves. "Oh yeah, that is kind of weird."

"What does she want now?" Maggie didn't sound too pleased.

Lori gave Glenn the list while she was helping Maggie with the horses so she hadn't actually seen it yet.

"I can't say." Glenn said and handed Marianne the list. Her brows furrowed when she read it and she gave it back to him.

"So when one of them asks you to keep your mouth shut—"

Glenn held up the list to Maggie. "Crawl out of my butt and help us look, please."

Maggie looked at the list, then at the two of them and stomped to the back of the pharmacy. "You've got to be kiddin' me."

Marianne wandered around the store. She pocketed a black bandana for Daryl and when she walked by the baby section she grabbed a pacifier, just in case. And anyways, it's not like they needed a screaming baby around alerting walkers to their presence.

"No! No! Glenn!" Maggie screamed. Pill bottles were tumbling to the floor and a walker was growling. Marianne turned on her heel and rushed towards the noise.

"Maggie!" Glenn yelled.

"Glenn, help! Get it off me!"

Marianne nocked an arrow. Shelves were in the way and she couldn't get a clear shot. Glenn was running to Maggie and grabbed a metal shelf. Marianne swiftly moved forward and to the left and fired. In the blink of eye she had another arrow ready in case the first one missed but she lowered her bow. The walker wasn't in sight. Glenn dropped the shelf and was leaping over the counter.

"Did it get you? Did it bite you?" He asked quickly and then hugged Maggie. She began to cry.

Marianne retrieved her arrow. She let Glenn comfort Maggie and searched for the pills herself. By the time she found them Maggie had calmed down. They packed everything and left.

Maggie was silently fuming the entire way back. When they got back to the farm she leapt off her horse and took off with the bag. Marianne and Glenn followed after Maggie, who looked furious.

"Hey! We got your stuff."

"Maggie, hang on, please." Glenn jogged up to her. Maggie was really fast at walking.

"Come on in here." Lori motioned to her tent.

"Why? Nothing to hide. We got your special delivery right here. We got your lotion, got your conditioner." She threw each item to the ground and then the entire brown paper bag. "Next time you want something get it your damn self. We're not your errand boys."

"Honey, I—"

Maggie bent to the ground and picked up a small box. "And here's your abortion pills." She stood up, threw it at Lori's feet and stormed away. Glenn looked apologetically at Lori before going after Maggie.

Lori stood there, shocked into silence. Marianne picked up the stuff and put it all back in the brown paper bag and handed it to her.

"Lori, those pills won't work the way you want them to. If you're plannin' to take them all, it'll give you a hormone swing to rival puberty but it won't…" Marianne sighed and walked away, keeping the pacifier to herself.

* * *

She skipped breakfast and left before everyone woke up, heading to the field where Jimmy had helped her set up hay bales yesterday. She had spent the previous evening making adjustments to her bow and now she was ready to shoot.

Marianne was retrieving her arrows for the seventh time when her stomach rumbled a little too loudly and the smell of cooking coming from camp was too enticing to ignore anymore. She pulled her last arrow out of the hay and turned around. She noticed everyone was at the barn having what looked to be an animated conversation.

She started jogging to them and could hear people talking but not the specifically what they were saying. As she got closer it was easier to make out the words.

"You found her doll, Daryl. That's what you did. You found a doll," Shane said. So they were talking about Sophia, but why next to the barn?

"You don't know what the hell you're talking about." Daryl moved angrily towards Shane.

"I'm just saying what needs to be said. Now, you get a good lead it's in the first forty-eight hours—"

"Shane, stop," Rick said. Marianne finally reached the group.

"Let me tell you something else, man. If she was alive out there and saw you coming all methed out with your buck knife, she would run in the other direction," Shane shouted.

A fight was breaking out between Daryl and Shane, and this time Marianne wasn't going to intervene, but everyone else did.

"Now let me talk to Hershel," Rick said and Marianne decided to end her confusion.

"Dale, what's goin' on?"

"There are walkers in the barn."

"What?" She looked at the building behind her with alarm. It suddenly didn't look so sturdy anymore.

This felt like a really bad joke. She had to see for herself so she walked up to the barn doors and peered in. Yes, there were definitely walkers in the barn. She blinked and for a second she thought she saw a child but no, it was merely shadows, a trick of the light. She stepped away and focused back on the conversation which had turned into a shouting match between Rick and Shane.

"Hershel sees those things in there as people, sick people. His wife, his stepson," Dale said, taking advantage of the break in shouting to get a word in.

"You knew?" Rick asked.

"Yesterday I talked to Hershel."

"And you waited the night?" Shane asked.

"I thought we could survive one more night. We did," he directed at Shane.

"The man is crazy, Rick. If Hershel thinks those things are alive or no." Shane's voice was starting to get hoarse from yelling.

Rick and Shane were beginning to fight again but suddenly the walkers, driven by their hunger, growled and pushed at the barn doors. The chains rattled ominously and the wood creaked like it wasn't going to hold. Fingers were sticking out from in between the planks. They needed to be killed.

* * *

"Stupid bitch."

She turned the corner and saw her brother looking annoyed and angry.

"Daryl, what—" But he was gone. She continued into the stable, concern making her steps slow. Marianne wanted to go after Daryl but knew from the look on his face that there wasn't a whole lot she could do. She stopped when she saw Carol standing there. The woman looked upset. She noticed a saddle on the ground and looked back at Carol.

"He was going to search for Sophia. I told him not to. Is that what you're doing?" Marianne nodded. "You shouldn't either. You're still hurt."

"Barely."

"Does anyone know you're leaving?"

"I was gonna tell Daryl but I couldn't find him." She picked up the saddle, put it back, and selected a different one. She'd be riding the same horse she used to make the run.

"Please don't go."

"I'm leavin' and nothin' you can say will stop me." Marianne sighed at the look on Carol's face. "Fine. I'll be gone an hour, two at the most."

True to her word, Marianne was back in two hours with five squirrels stringed up and hanging from her shoulder. It would've been six but she missed the first one by an inch and nearly lost the arrow.

Carl roped her into playing checkers with him, Beth, and Patricia. She'd never played the game in teams before. They were tied one-to-one and well into their third game when T-Dog and Andrea walked up to the porch.

"Where is everyone?" Andrea asked Glenn, who had been sitting on the porch steps with Maggie.

"You haven't seen Rick?" Glenn asked. Marianne stood up, abandoning the checkers board, and saw Carol and Daryl walking up too.

"He went off with Hershel. We were supposed to leave a couple hours ago," Andrea said. Marianne walked off of the porch and stood next to Maggie, starting to get angry that hours had been wasted not looking for Sophia.

"Yeah you were. What the hell?" Daryl had looked to be in a better mood but not anymore. "Damn it. Isn't anybody takin' this seriously? We got us a damn trail." Daryl turned around. "Oh, here we go."

Shane was coming towards them looking like he was on a mission. He had the bag of guns and Marianne had a good idea of what he wanted to do with them. He began handing them out.

"Look, it was one thing sittin' around here pickin' daisies when we thought this place was supposed to be safe, but now we know it ain't."

Shane offered a rifle to Glenn, who hesitated before taking it. Maggie told Shane to stop but he didn't and the next gun he gave out was to Marianne. Lori showed up not looking happy about what was happening. Shane tried to give Carl a gun but she stopped him.

"Oh shit," T-Dog said, making everyone turn around. Coming into view was Jimmy, followed by Rick and Hershel, who were each leading a walker with a snare pole. Shane took off running towards them and the group followed.

"What the hell are you doing?" Shane yelled.

"Shane, just back off," Rick said.

"Why do your people have guns?" Hershel asked.

"You see what they're holding onto?" Shane pointed at the walkers that were struggling to reach the closest human.

"I see who I'm holding onto," Hershel said. He was delusional.

"No man, you don't."

"Shane, just let us do this and then we can talk," Rick said but Shane wasn't having it and continued his tirade. Marianne agreed with what he was saying but it didn't help that he looked like a madman.

"They're gonna kill all of us!"

"Shane, shut up!" Rick's patience for his friend was gone.

"Hey, Hershel man, let me ask you something." Shane pulled out his gun. "Could a living breathing person, could they walk away from this?" He fired three times at the walker Hershel was holding, hitting it in the chest. Shane continued to make his point by shooting it five more times.

"Why is it still coming?"

"Shane, enough!"

"Yeah, you're right man. That is enough." Shane shot the walker in the head and it dropped to the ground. Hershel fell to his knees in shock. He wasn't the only one. Marianne looked at the faces of several people. What were they expecting? That Shane wouldn't follow through on what he so obviously wanted to do?

"Enough risking our lives for a little girl who's gone," Shane said and Marianne frowned. "Enough living next to a barn full of things that are trying to kill us. Enough. Rick, it ain't like it was before. Now if y'all want to live, if you want to survive, you got to fight for it."

Shane ran to the barn, grabbed a pick axe and started hitting the lock. Rick was yelling at Hershel to take his snare pole so he could be free to stop Shane but Hershel didn't move. All Rick could do was plead with him to stop but Shane broke the lock and lifted away the plank of wood, which was all that was left holding the doors closed.

The first walker appeared and Marianne took the safety off and raised her gun. Shane was the first to shoot. Bullets started flying and not all of them were hitting their mark. Even so, walkers fell to the ground as fast as they were coming out of the barn.

When everyone thought it was over, a faint growling came from inside the barn. It sounded different, timid if that was possible and not like any walker she'd heard before. It was almost as if…

A child's shoe was the first thing she saw and then there she was. Sophia.

Of course she knew. Deep down, in places she didn't want to go, she knew. The child-sized shadow had been bothering her all day. She had convinced herself that it was an illusion and that her eyes hadn't adjusted yet during the brief time she had looked into the dim barn. And even if there was a child in that barn, it didn't mean it was Sophia.

No one moved, except for Carol who ran towards Sophia before Daryl stopped her. She cried and whimpered her daughter's name. Sophia's clouded eyes spotted the group and she began to take shaky steps forward, stepping over and around the dead walkers.

Marianne couldn't breathe. She couldn't let Sophia be like this. Not for another second. She raised her gun and took aim.

"I'm sorry." Marianne pulled the trigger.


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: Thank you for the follows and the favorites!**

* * *

 **Chapter 12**

She felt the sun on her skin but inside she was cold.

For a second it seemed like the ground had disappeared, but it was there, firmly beneath her feet. She was alive. Sophia was dead, had in fact died twice. By a bite and a bullet. Her bullet.

People were starting to move again. The initial shock was over. A crying Beth ran to her dead mother and hugged her, but her mother wasn't dead enough. With a snarl, she grabbed Beth and the girl's screams snapped Marianne back to reality.

Shane and Rick reached her first and grabbed Beth, trying to pull her away from her mother. Glenn held on to Annette's arms. Beth was successfully taken out of her dead mother's reach and into Hershel's arms. T-Dog angrily stomped on the walker's head to no avail. No one had any weapons on them besides guns, except Marianne who knelt beside Annette, took the knife out of her boot and stabbed Annette's head. The struggle was over.

They didn't need any more surprises so Marianne checked the barn for any walkers that might be hiding there and picked up a horse blanket on her way out. She gently laid it over Sophia's body. Andrea was nearby and kept looking at her. They all looked at her but nobody had spoken to her yet.

Hershel, Maggie, Beth, Patricia, and Glenn started walking to the house with Shane and Rick following. She could hear Shane yelling at Hershel, thinking that he knew about Sophia the whole time. Marianne didn't believe it.

Lori and Carl remained sitting on the ground where they had huddled during the gunfire.

"I think she did the right thing, shooting her like that." _The right thing._ It echoed in her head.

Marianne didn't know what to do with herself so she just stood there, staring blindly at the woods. She wanted to leave.

Shane and Rick returned. Lori asked Dale to take Carl to the house. A flock of birds burst from the treetops and she wondered what had spooked them. She wanted to kill more walkers.

"You want us to start burying?" T-Dog asked.

A service for Sophia was mentioned. They would bury her next to Annette and Shawn. She should cover them up too. Marianne looked around but someone had already done it.

"And the others?" Jimmy asked. "That's a lot of digging."

"We bury the ones we love and burn the rest," Andrea said. Did she love Sophia? She didn't want to answer that question.

"Let's get to work," Lori said. Everyone began to disperse, but Marianne continued to stand there like she was rooted to the ground.

"Are you alright?" T-Dog asked.

She couldn't lie to him. "No." He was about to say something else but Marianne walked away.

She drifted around the farm and knew she should be helping dig the graves. Another thing to feel guilty about. She was sick and tired of feeling.

Marianne couldn't face Carol. Lori went to tell her they were ready but the grieving mother didn't return with her, only Daryl. He stood next to her and brushed his shoulder against hers. When she looked at him, he was already looking at her. She could see a flicker of worry in his eyes, an unspoken question. Are you okay?

She didn't answer him and looked away, focusing on the graves. For a funeral of three, it was short. Nobody was in a talking mood. After it was over she visited the pond Daryl had showed her and sat on the dock staring into the water. It didn't bring her any comfort.

* * *

Marianne was returning from the pond and hadn't planned on what to do for the rest of the day when she saw Lori leave the house with a jacket on.

"Where do you think you're going?"

"I'm going to find Rick and bring Hershel back. Beth needs him."

Marianne stood between Lori and the car. "No. You're not."

"You're not going to stop me."

"I will and I am. When it starts getting dark and they're not back, I'll go. It's either that or I tell the group you're tryin' to leave and we'll see how that turns out." Marianne couldn't let a pregnant Lori leave the relative safety of the farm and get hurt, not if she could stop it.

Lori put her hands on her hips. "That's not much of a choice."

"That's the point. If one of us is goin' to do something dumb, I'd rather it be me. You're responsible for more than yourself now Lori. I don't need to remind you." She was going to help Lori whether either of them liked it or not. Marianne was leaning towards not.

Lori reluctantly agreed. They drove up the gate and sat in the car until it started to get dark. There was still no Rick, Glenn, or Hershel.

"Okay, looks like it's time to hit the road."

"Thank you." Lori left the car and opened the gate. As Marianne drove away she looked in her rear view mirror and saw Lori wave at her. She sighed and shook her head.

Marianne couldn't believe she was going to town in search of three grown men who could take care of themselves. Wasting gas, wasting her time and exposing herself to danger. But it's not like she had anything better to do and she needed to do something, anything to keep her mind off of today.

She arrived in town with only a vague idea of where she could find the bar. She knew it wasn't on the same street as the pharmacy and the first one she searched was a bust. She was about to turn onto a second street when she heard a volley of gunshots. Marianne slammed on the brakes.

The shooting stopped and she got out of the car and cautiously looked around the corner. She saw a white truck and three men standing in front of the bar with the windows blown out. "Well, shit."

In an instant, she knew what she going to do. It was stupid but she'd bet that those men were stupider. She took off her shirt so she only had a tank top on, which she pulled down to lower the neckline. Marianne stepped around the corner.

"Do y'all need some help?" She called out to them. Guns were pointed at her but she smiled. "I heard a whole lotta shots and thought someone must have a hell of a biter problem." She walked closer.

"Stay where you are."

Marianne held up her empty hands. "I'm not here for trouble, boys. My name's Mary. I have a gun tucked in the back of my pants and a knife you can see on my side. That's it. You can pat me down if you want. I'm just here to help. Now, is someone gonna tell me what's happening?"

"Some assholes in that bar killed our friends," the youngest one said.

"Randall, shut up."

"Well, they don't sound too nice. You get 'em?" Marianne had started walking towards them again but stopped before she'd be in the line of fire if Rick, Glenn, or Hershel decided to shoot.

"We don't know," Randall said. He was either stupid or didn't care that he was told to be quiet.

"We're wasting time. How do we know we can trust you?" The one she now considered the leader asked her.

"'Cause you're still breathin'. I coulda snuck up on y'all real easy. A bullet to each head. I'm a great shot, my daddy taught me. But like I said, I'm here to help." They whispered to each other. Their guns were trained at the bar again. Randall kept staring at her so Marianne gave him a smile that was more than friendly. The boy became flustered.

Their leader called her over and she hoped Rick, Glenn, and Hershel wouldn't have the worst timing ever and decide to start shooting. "You say you want to help? We're going to kill these assholes. Randall's going on the roof of that building to cover us. You go with Sean around back and I'll stay here."

"So I shoot to kill?" Their leader nodded. She still didn't know his name. "I'm Nate, by the way."

"Nice to meet you Nate. Let's get this show on the road."

Randall headed across the street to look for roof access. Marianne and Sean jogged to a narrow alley that would lead them to the back of the bar. She kept up with Sean until he turned the corner and then ran back to the front of the alley. Randall was in view and she pointed her gun at his legs. He was lucky she wasn't shooting to kill.

Her aim was perfect. Randall collapsed and screamed in pain. She ran back down the alley to meet up with Sean.

"They shot Randall," she whispered.

"Where were you?"

"I thought I saw biters down the street. False alarm." Sean nodded, believing her bold faced lies.

They quietly walked to the back door. He stood against the wall and reached over to turn the doorknob. Marianne was on the other side of the door. Someone from inside fired and the door's window shattered. Sean retreated but Marianne stayed where she was. He motioned for her to follow but she shook her head.

Instead, she headed in the opposite direction and hid behind a dumpster which she peeked around, waiting for the door to open again. She'd cover them when Sean came out of hiding.

It opened again and she saw Glenn sticking his head out first to look around, then he completely stepped out of the building. He started to slowly walk in her direction and Hershel stood in the doorway looking ready to cover Glenn. She got ready herself and sure enough Sean popped out and took a shot at Glenn, who dove behind the dumpster narrowly avoiding bumping into Marianne.

Marianne and Hershel shot at Sean at the same time. She didn't know whose bullet hit Sean or if both did but it didn't matter because he wasn't trying to kill them anymore. Now all they had to worry about was Nate. She could still hear Randall occasionally moaning in pain. She doubted that he would be in a state of mind to pick up his gun and start shooting.

She turned to Glenn. "Are you hit?" He didn't answer. "Glenn?" She checked him over but didn't see any blood. He was frozen in place and looked a little pale. Sean was crying out in pain even louder than Randall and she wished they'd both shut up.

"What happened?" She heard Rick ask.

"He fired. He must've hit Glenn."

Marianne half stepped out from behind the dumpster. "Rick, Hershel. He's okay."

"Marianne?" Rick began moving towards the dumpster, pointing a gun in each direction.

"Yeah, we need to go. I took out one of them so there's only one left."

Rick reached them. "Glenn's trying to make it to the car."

"I figured. Want me to take a shot at it?" She paused, realizing what she'd just said. "Sorry, wrong choice of words."

"We'll all go." Rick turned to him. "It's all right. The car's right there. We're almost home." Glenn looked freaked out. "You good?"

Glenn nodded and Marianne could see a new resolve set in his face. "I'm good."

They started to make a run for the car but stopped as a white truck appeared. They retreated back to the dumpster.

"Let's get out of here! Roamers all over the place! Hurry up!" Nate was yelling to Randall but it didn't seem like the younger guy could stand up, let alone walk.

"Help me!"

"I gotta go." Nate started driving away. "I'm sorry!"

Randall was yelling at Nate for help even as the truck disappeared around the corner.

"Get Hershel," Rick told Glenn. "Marianne, come with me."

Marianne followed Rick. They headed across the street towards Randall. "We gotta help him."

"Why?"

"Because walkers are coming. We can't just leave him here."

They reached Randall and stood over him. He was still begging for help.

"Mary! Please, help me!"

"I'm the one that shot you, idiot. Now shut your mouth."

Hershel and Glenn came up beside Rick and Marianne.

"We have to go now," Hershel said.

"No, don't leave me please. Mary, don't leave me."

"We have to go," Hershel said again.

"We're taking him with us," Rick said.

"He was just shooting at us," Glenn said, outraged.

"He's a kid," Rick said. "Hershel, get the car running. Glenn, help me get him up." Glenn sighed in frustration but helped Rick anyways.

"Walkers are coming," Hershel called out and they turned around to see a group of them heading their way.

"Come on let's hurry," Rick said as he and Glenn hobbled along with Randall between them while Marianne began shooting at walkers.

They made it to the car and they shoved Randall into the back. He still wouldn't shut up but this time he was thanking them. Hershel was already in the driver's seat ready to go. Rick and Glenn quickly got into the Chevy but Marianne shut the door without getting in.

"My car's just around the corner. I'll follow you." Before any of them could protest she ran off. The walkers were still far enough away for her to make it and she did. She honked to signal she was ready. Hershel starting driving and Marianne followed, leaving the walkers behind.

They were a safe distance from town when Hershel pulled off to the side of the road and Marianne pulled up behind him. She got out of the car, as did the three men.

"We'll rest here 'til morning," Rick said. "It's not safe to drive at night."

Marianne nodded. "Who's on Randall watch? We need to tie him up. Put a blindfold on him."

"We've got that covered," Rick said. "I want to talk to you." He pulled her aside.

Rick opened his mouth to say something and she had a pretty good idea what it was going to be. "Lori was going to look for you so I did instead."

Rick blinked and looked like that wasn't what he was expecting. "Lori was going to go out by herself?"

"Yeah, without tellin' anyone. Lucky I saw her before she could."

Rick sighed. "This isn't the first time you've helped my family when you didn't have to."

Marianne looked away. "It's nothin'."

"It's not noth—"

"I'm gonna try to get some sleep. Today's been a trial. Wake me if you need me to keep an eye on Randall."

Marianne walked back to her car and got in. She cracked the windows, reclined the driver's seat and shut her eyes, not really expecting to fall asleep but before she knew it, there was a knock on her window and she opened her eyes to see dawn had arrived.

They made good time to the farm and when they pulled up to the house, most of the group greeted them. Lori, Carl, and Maggie looked happy and relieved that Rick and Glenn were back but when Marianne looked at Daryl she could tell that he was definitely mad at her.

"Who the hell is that?" T-Dog pointed to Hershel's car and everyone looked.

"That's Randall," Glenn said and people started to walk towards the car, including Daryl, who passed right by her without even giving her a glance. Marianne closed her eyes and sighed. This wasn't going to be fun.

Daryl and Marianne didn't get a chance to talk until after the group meeting about Randall. Marianne was packing up her things to move next to Daryl when he finally walked up to her.

"You left without tellin' me. I thought we weren't supposed to do that."

"I know, go ahead, call me a hypocrite." She stuffed her clothes haphazardly into a bag.

"Why'd you go? You owe them nothing."

She stood up and looked at him. "Because Lori was going to go by herself."

"Then you should've let her," he said gruffly. Marianne put the last of her things outside her tent and started to take it down. Daryl began helping her.

She shook her head. "I couldn't." Marianne was tired of keeping Lori's secret. Rick knew now and the group would find out soon enough so what did it matter? "She's pregnant."

For a moment Daryl stopped what he was doing. "That's Rick's problem, or Shane's, not yours."

"Rick wasn't around."

"It's still not your problem."

She stopped messing with her tent. When had she started to care about these people? That's exactly what gets a person in trouble. That's what _did_ get her in trouble. "I know that. Don't worry, I'm not makin' a habit of it."

* * *

 **A/N: Sorry for the late update. I've been sick and busy, a super awesome combination, but here it is. I hope you like it.**


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: Thank you for the follows and the favorites.**

 **I made an abridged version of the final discussion about Randall because that was a lot of talking. I cut a lot out but the gist of the conversation remains.**

* * *

 **Chapter 13**

"Marianne's not back yet." Carol announced as they were all getting ready to eat dinner. She had been keeping an eye on her and Daryl. She brought them food on plates that would appear overnight on the picnic table already clean. They kept mostly to themselves and Lori had told him that's how it used to be at the quarry, where Marianne hadn't even joined the other women to wash clothes.

"What did Daryl say?" Rick asked.

"He wouldn't say anything."

Rick sighed. This had been going on for about a week now. Ever since they had found Sophia, Marianne would disappear into the woods at the crack of dawn and show up right before sunset. A few days ago he had seen her come back and even from a distance he could see the blood on her shirt.

"If she's not back by morning we'll plan a search." They were supposed to get rid of Randall tomorrow but he supposed they could postpone that another day.

"Rick, man, we can't go looking for every person that doesn't come back before dark," Shane said.

"But we have to." Carl looked really worried.

"We'll search for her just like we would for anyone else," Rick said.

"But she's not anyone else. When we were at the quarry, Daryl was gone for days. What makes this any different? And who knows where to start with the way she wanders around these woods."

"Shane's right. She can take care of herself," Andrea said. Lori looked displeased at the comment.

"She could be hurt," his wife said.

"She could be anywhere. A needle in a haystack, man," Shane said.

"We'll discuss this in the morning." There was a finality in Rick's voice that made everyone silent but a few minutes into dinner the conversations picked up again.

He went to bed that night hoping Marianne was safe and that she'd turn up in the morning. He hated to admit it, but Shane made some good points. There was no clue on where to start looking for her, but they could search nearby buildings to see if she holed up in one of them. There was also the fact that she was capable of handling herself out in the woods but then there was the possibility that she had run into another herd or worse, other people.

He woke up the next morning ready for another argument with Shane about searching for Marianne. They waited until almost noon before Rick spread out the county map on the hood of a car. Shane was brooding close by and Hershel was pointing out the nearby farms on the map when T-Dog spotted a truck coming up the dirt road that led to the house. Rick's hand reflexively went to his Colt.

"That's Paul Willis' old truck. His farm is about 15 miles from here," Hershel said, shielding his eyes from the sun with his hand.

Hoping it was Marianne but preparing for the worse, Rick and the other men grabbed their guns. As the truck got closer they relaxed their stance. Marianne was behind the wheel and she was alone.

She parked near them and got out of the truck, slinging her bow across her back. Her clothes were bloody but it looked like she'd taken a shower recently. She was smiling broadly and this made Rick angry. Here they were, worrying about her and she was smiling.

He strode up to her. "Where were you?"

"I found a farm. There weren't any breaches in the fence around the house, just the fields. I cleared those and the house. The cellar and pantry are full of food. They have a generator too and there's lots of fuel left we can take. Put some supplies in the back of the truck."

"You didn't come back last night. We were all worried." Marianne looked confused at his response.

"Relax, I told Daryl not to wait up for me." Her shrug annoyed him more than it should have.

"He didn't tell us that."

"And that's my problem how?" She started walking to her tent and Rick followed.

"You need to tell us when you're going to be gone overnight."

"Sorry, didn't have any cell reception."

"You need to take this seriously. You could've run into Randall's people." His voice was getting louder and he didn't understand why he was getting so mad at her.

"But I didn't."

"You're not running off by yourself anymore."

She laughed. There was a dangerous edge to it. "You can't order me to do anything."

"I will if I have to," Rick said. This made her pause and she glared at him.

"You're really startin' to piss me off, Rick Grimes."

"The feeling is mutual."

"Good, I'm glad we can agree on somethin'." She turned her back on him and started walking again.

"You could get hurt out there. Or die."

"Leave me alone Rick." She was almost yelling at him but he wasn't about to give up. She needed to understand.

"What about Daryl? What's it gonna do to him if that happens?"

She whirled around. "Get off my back!" He had touched a nerve.

* * *

"Get off my back!" Her hand twitched. It took all the strength she had not to hit Rick. She had been busting her ass securing the perimeter of the farm, killing walkers that strayed too close and now she'd found more supplies for the coming winter and this was how he was treating her.

Rick took advantage of her silence. "Is this about Sophia? You're not the only one who lost her."

She narrowed her eyes at him. "Don't insult me. I never said I was. Never implied it." She cocked her head to the side. "Don't you have other things to worry about? What about your wife?" That shut him up and with a satisfied smirk she walked off, leaving him behind.

She arrived at her and Daryl's camp but he wasn't around. She dropped her stuff off and headed to their makeshift cemetery.

Marianne took the wilting flowers out of the glass bottle on Sophia's grave and put in fresh ones. There had been a tiny greenhouse with rose bushes at the other farm and she thought roses would look nice on the girl's grave. She heard footsteps coming from behind her and twisted around to see Carol walking towards her. She stood a few feet away from Marianne.

"You should get out of those clothes."

"I don't have anything clean left."

"I can wash them for you."

"You don't have to do that. It's a pain in the ass to get the blood out. I think I stained everything."

"I like to keep busy. I think you do too," Carol said. Marianne picked a long piece of grass and started pulling it apart. "Rick meant well. I think you should stop going out there. It's not safe."

"It's not safe in here." Marianne began taking the petals off of the wilted flowers and scattering them on the ground. "I guess we can do the laundry together. It'll go faster." She looked at Carol, who had a small smile on her face.

* * *

Carol was helping Marianne hang up her clothes to dry when Rick and Shane returned with Randall. They roughly led the boy to the shed and chained him up. Both men looked like they had beat the crap out of each other but no one commented on their bloody faces. She was still mad at Rick and she didn't like Shane, so she derived some satisfaction from seeing their cuts and bruises.

The group gathered to find out why they still had a prisoner.

"What happened out there?" Lori asked.

"We got overrun by walkers. We couldn't leave him," Rick said.

"He went to school with Maggie. He knows where we are," Shane added.

"Oh my God." Lori put a hand on her chest.

"So what do we do now?" Glenn asked.

"We need to find out more about his people. Assess the threat." Rick looked at Marianne. "We'll do that tomorrow morning."

The group slowly dispersed. Marianne meandered back to her tent. She wanted to get to bed early tonight. For days she hadn't been sleeping well and she was exhausted. If this went on much longer mistakes could be made. Mistakes that could cost Marianne her life.

She had an early dinner of roasted squirrel and was lying on her cot, close to sleep, when she heard Daryl come back. Not long after that, she heard another set of footsteps getting closer and then she heard Rick's voice.

"Daryl, I wanna ask you something."

"Is this about Randall?"

"Yes it is. I need you to talk to him. Find out what you can." Marianne got up from her cot, unzipped the tent flap, and poked her head outside.

"What kind of talkin' do you have in mind?"

"Do what you have to do." Rick had his hands on his hips and Daryl nodded. Marianne sighed, went back into her tent and pulled her boots on. Rick was already walking away when she sat across the campfire from Daryl.

"I'm talkin' to Randall with you."

"You don't have'ta. And I'm better off on my own."

"We can do the bad cop, good cop routine. I'll be the bad cop," she said lightly.

Daryl snorted. "Yeah, right."

"I don't think you realize how vicious women can be."

"Oh, I have an idea." He looked at her pointedly.

"Then it's settled."

"It won't be pretty."

"When has that ever stopped me?"

* * *

Within a few minutes of entering the shed Randall had blood on his face.

"Come on, Randall. It doesn't have to be this way. We don't want to hurt you."

"Speak for yourself," Daryl said, crossing his arms.

"I don't want to hurt you. Who are you trying to protect? Nate left you behind. I have feelin' he wouldn't be the only one."

"I told you. I don't know anything."

"That's a lie Randall." She gave a long, drawn out sigh. "You're lyin' to us." Marianne moved closer to him until she was able to place a foot on his leg. She pressed the heel of her boot onto his wound. Randall cried out but she kept increasing the pressure. "It doesn't have to be like this Randall. Just tell us the truth."

Marianne backed away from him, removing her foot from his leg, to give him a little time to catch his breath so he could speak.

"I'm not lyin'. I don't know. I don't know anything."

"Wrong answer." She looked at her brother, who was leaning against the wall opposite of Randall. It was his turn again. "Daryl." He stepped forward and Marianne retreated to sit on the table in the corner.

Daryl punched Randall so hard, the boy slid off of his chair sideways and landed on the floor.

"I told you."

"You told us shit!"

"I barely knew those guys. I met 'em on the road." Finally, they were getting something even though it was a load of nothing.

"How many in your group?" Daryl asked. Randall looked pained at the question and didn't answer it so Daryl pulled out his hunting knife.

"No, no, no, come on, man."

Daryl slammed the tip of knife into the floor between Randall's legs. "How many?"

"Thirty, thirty guys." This made her stand up and take a few steps towards Randall and Daryl.

"Where?" Marianne asked.

"Uh…" Daryl ripped Randall's bandage off and Randall screamed. "I don't know. I swear. We were never anyplace more than a night."

Daryl dug his knife in Randall's wound. "Scouting? Planning on staying local?"

"I don't know. They left me behind. Mary, please, you saw." Randall looked at Marianne desperately.

"Maybe that 'please' would've worked better with my real name," she said.

"Don't look at her. You lost your chance with her. You ever pick off a scab?"

"Come on, man! I'm trying to cooperate."

"Start real slow at first. Sooner or later, you just gotta rip it off."

"Okay! They have weapons, heavy stuff, automatics. But I didn't do anything."

"Your boys shot at my boys, tried to take this farm. You just went along for the ride? You're trying to tell me you're innocent?"

"Yes! These people took me in. Not just guys—a whole group of 'em. Men and women, kids too, just like you people." Daryl stood up and began pacing. "I thought I'd have a better chance with them but…" Randall quickly looked over at Marianne. "We go out, scavenge. Just the men. One night we found this little campsite. A man and his two daughters. Teenagers, you know? Real young. Real cute."

Marianne knew where this was going and her hands clenched into fists. While Randall told them what happened she walked closer to him. Daryl looked over at her and moved aside a little to make room for her.

"No, but I didn't touch those girls. No, I swear I didn't—" Marianne punched Randall as hard as she could and he cried out, falling onto his side.

"You gotta believe me. I ain't like that." But she ignored him and eventually Daryl had to pull her away.

"Let's go. We've got enough," Daryl said.

They left the shed, making sure it was locked before they headed to the camp where the group was waiting for them. Marianne shook out her right hand. It was a little banged up and bloody but Daryl's looked slightly worse.

"You alright?" Daryl asked.

"Peachy."

The two of them continued the walk in silence until they reached the group.

"Boy there's got a gang, thirty men. They have heavy artillery and they ain't looking to make friends. They roll through here, our boys are dead. And our women, they're gonna wish they were," Daryl said.

"What did you two do?" Carol asked.

Daryl glanced down at his bloody knuckles. "Had a little chat."

"No one goes near this guy," Rick announced.

"Rick, what are you gonna do?" Lori asked.

"We have no choice. He's a threat. We have to eliminate the threat."

"You're just gonna kill him?" Dale looked appalled.

"It's settled. I'll do it today," Rick said.

* * *

Marianne was cleaning her arrows under a tree far from the house when Dale walked up to her.

"I'm not sittin' out here because I want company," she said, not looking up from her task.

"I figured as much. I almost didn't find you."

"Pity."

"I talked to Daryl about Randall."

"Yeah? How'd that work out for ya?" She set aside an arrow and picked up another one.

"Not good. I'm hoping for a better result with you."

"Hope all you want Dale. It don't cost much."

"What I'm hoping is that you'll side with me. To save Randall's life."

She looked up at him. "Why would I do that?"

"Because if you had wanted him dead, you wouldn't have shot his leg."

Marianne scoffed. "I've been regrettin' that decision for a week. If I'd have known all the trouble he'd cause, I would've left him for the walkers."

"You don't really believe that."

"Then you don't know me too well."

"I know you're a good person, despite what you did to Randall this morning." Marianne snorted. "You cared about Sophia. You—"

"You try that line with Daryl? What makes you think it'd work with me?" Her patience with Dale was wearing thin.

"Because you have a heart. I've seen it. Others have too."

"My heart says Randall needs to die. If we let him go and he brings back his men, there's a lesson to be learned that costs way too much and we may not survive it."

"So that's it then? You're going to condemn a person to die without so much as blinking."

Marianne put her arrows back in her quiver and stood up. "Oh, I blinked. But yeah, pretty much. See you around."

She walked away from a distressed Dale and headed for the woods. It was the only place she could guarantee she would be alone. Well, except for walkers but she'd be more than happy to kill them.

Wanting to circle half of the property with what was left of the day, Marianne stayed somewhat close to the farm's perimeter. She had covered quite a bit of ground when Marianne thought she heard a scream that sounded like Carl. She ran towards it as fast as she could, hoping it was some freakish bird call instead of Rick's son.

She didn't have to go far before Carl and the walker trying to grab him came into sight. An arrow flew through the air and right into the walker's head. It slumped in mid-reach, its arms outstretched in death.

"What the hell are you doin' out here?" She couldn't keep the anger out of her voice and didn't want to. It was like this kid was trying to get himself killed. He needed to stop wandering off and his parents needed to keep a closer eye on him. She had feeling he didn't get disciplined very much. Carl, still stunned, didn't answer.

She walked down to the edge of the creek and stared down Carl, who stood on the other side. "Well?"

He looked down at the ground and kicked some leaves. "I was just playing."

"With a walker? Are you stupid or are you crazy?" She walked through the creek and next to the walker, retrieving her arrow. "They aren't playthings. This ain't a game." She spotted something in the leaves next to him and pointed. "What's that?"

Carl looked guilty as hell. "Don't tell my parents."

"Don't tell them what?" She walked over to it and picked up a gun. "This is Daryl's. So you're a thief too."

"Please don't tell my parents."

"Tough luck, buddy. Get a move on. I need to have a talk with your dad."

Marianne was planning to tell Rick what Carl had been up to right away but when they arrived at the house it was time for the group to discuss Randall's fate so she figured it could wait.

The group gathered in the living room. Marianne leaned her back against the wall behind Glenn, who was sitting on the piano stool, and a little to the left behind Rick.

"Let's see where everybody stands," Rick said. "Then we can talk through the options."

"Well, where I sit, there's only one way to move forward," Shane said.

"Killing him. Right? I mean why even bother to take a vote, it's clear which way the wind's blowing," Dale said.

"Well, if people believe we should spare him, I wanna know," Rick said.

"Well, I can tell you it's a small group. Maybe just me and Glenn."

Glenn looked up at Dale. "Look, I think you're pretty much right about everything all the time, but he's not one of us. And we've lost too many people already."

"Well, he could be an asset. Give him a chance to prove himself," Dale asserted.

"We're not letting him walk around," Rick said.

"He's right. I wouldn't feel safe unless he was tied up," Lori said.

"Look, say we let him join us, right? Maybe he's helpful, maybe he's nice. We let our guard down and maybe he runs off, brings back his thirty men," Shane said.

"So the answer is to kill him to prevent a crime that he may never even attempt? If we do this, we're saying there's no hope. Rule of law is dead. There is no civilization," Dale said.

"You've been talking all day, going around in circles," Daryl said. "You just wanna go around in circles again?"

"This is a young man's life. Is this what it's come to? We kill someone because we can't decide what else to do with him? You saved him and now look at us. He's been tortured. He's gonna be executed. How are we any better than those people that we're so afraid of?"

"We don't rape people. They didn't do that because they didn't have a choice. You think they'll stop there? We're not killin' for fun but I can guarantee you they have men who will," Marianne said.

"We all know what needs to be done," Shane said.

"No, Dale is right. We can't leave any stone unturned here. We have a responsibility—"

Andrea interrupted Rick. "So what's the other solution? We haven't come up with a single viable option yet. I wish we could."

"So let's work on it!" Dale said.

"Stop it. I'm sick of everybody arguing. You can't ask us to decide something like this. Please decide, either of you, both of you. But leave me out," Carol suddenly spoke out.

"Not speaking out or killing him yourself—there's no difference," Dale told Carol.

"All right, that's enough," Rick said. "Anybody that wants the floor before we make a final decision has the chance."

"You once said that we don't kill the living," Dale said.

"Well, that was before the living tried to kill us."

"But don't you see? If we do this, the people that we were, the world that we knew is dead. And this new world is ugly. A world I don't wanna live in and I don't believe that any of you do. Please. Let's just do what's right. Isn't there anybody else that's going to stand with me?" Dale asked.

"He's right," Andrea said. "We should try to find another way."

"Anybody else?" Rick asked. No one spoke.

"Are y'all gonna watch too? No, you'll go hide your heads in your tents and try to forget that we're slaughtering a human being." Dale shook his head. "I won't be a party to it."

* * *

Rick, Shane, Daryl, and Marianne waited until dark to take Randall to the barn. Randall was either in denial or hadn't realized yet what they were about to do. He kept turning his head trying to look at her but every time he did Daryl would push him forward, making Randall stumble. He had latched onto her like a lost puppy and for reasons she couldn't fathom, still did even after her part in his interrogation.

Daryl led Randall to stand in the middle of the barn.

"It's all gonna be over soon," Shane said as he came up behind the boy and tied black pantyhose over Randall's eyes.

"What's gonna be over soon?" Randall asked and then it seemed to hit him. "Hey, hey. No, no, no, no." Shane shushed him but Randall began to cry. Shane stepped away from him and now they were all standing around him, with Rick directly in front of Randall.

"Would you like to stand or kneel?" Rick asked.

"Oh no, please," Randall said instead of answering. Daryl kicked his legs and Randall fell to his knees. He began to sob.

"Do you have any final words?" Rick asked.

"No, please. Please don't."

Marianne's heartbeat picked up a little and her stomach twisted. This is what she had wanted, right? It was kill or be killed.

Rick raised his gun. The end of the barrel was barely an inch away from Randall's head. She wouldn't look away. Rick was steeling himself.

"Do it, Dad." Marianne turned around to see Carl standing in the barn's entrance. "Do it."

Marianne could pinpoint the second Rick changed his mind, even before he lowered his gun. Shane pulled Carl out of the barn and she watched the struggle in Rick's face. He wasn't going to do it but she didn't feel relieved or disappointed.

"Take him away," Rick said and Daryl grabbed onto Randall and starting pushing him forward. Marianne stood aside as the two passed her. She kept looking at Rick and then at the spot Randall had been. There should be a dead body there and blood splattered on the loose hay on the ground. They'd sweep it up and throw it away but now that wouldn't happen.

Rick led his son back to camp and she trailed behind, the last to leave the barn. She shut the doors behind her.

"We're keeping him in custody for now," Rick said to the group waiting around the campfire. Andrea was the only one that looked happy about it.

Marianne waited until Rick was done talking to Lori to approach him and pull him aside.

"Rick, I need to talk to you about Carl. I wish I would've earlier but we were a little preoccupied. He did somethin' dangerous today," she said in a low voice.

"What did he do?"

"I caught him in the woods messin' around with a walker stuck in the mud. It got loose. Could've bit him real easy." Rick looked at the tent his son was currently in. His jaw clenched. "And that's not all. He stole Daryl's gun."

Rick nodded, looking deep in thought. "Thank you for telling me."

"I won't tell you how to raise your son, but he can't be a kid anymore. Not like before. He'll keep doin' things like this. He needs more responsibility. I didn't have much of a childhood. I had to grow up fast and I turned out…not terrible." Marianne could've sworn she saw the corner of his mouth turn up a little. "But I'm a survivor and he needs to be too."

* * *

 **A/N: The next update might be a little late so I apologize in advance.**


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: Sorry for the long wait. I had trouble pulling this chapter together on top of writer's block and life happening. My motivation tanked for awhile but it's back now. I wanted to get this out as soon as I could so forgive the mistakes. I didn't put the time into editing like I usually do.**

 **Thank you for the follows and the favorites and for continuing to read.**

Disclaimer: I don't own The Walking Dead.

* * *

 **Chapter Fourteen**

Daryl revved his motorcycle. He couldn't feel the cold air beating against his face. All he could feel was a weight settling down inside of him, getting heavier the further they drove away from the farm.

He fought the urge to turn around and abandon the group that had abandoned his sister, but he had left her behind too. His chest tightened at the thought of it. Daryl swallowed, a lump in his throat, and licked his chapped lips. He tasted salt.

She didn't deserve this. Marianne should be buried with a bullet through the brain, not to be one of _them_. Rotting and mindless.

He didn't want to be the last Dixon standing.

" _She's gone Daryl. Her and Jimmy. We saw it. She's gone."_

" _You don't know what you saw. She ain't dead. I'm goin' back."_

He hadn't prepared himself for this. Daryl thought losing Merle was bad but that was a walk in the woods compared to losing Marianne and now there was nobody left. He was alone.

" _What are you doing?"_

" _What does it look like? She'll come here. She'll find us. Need to leave a trail, is all."_

No one stopped him from leaving her a message but Daryl saw the looks that passed between what was left of them. He could care less but, as the miles flew by, the little hope he had clung onto died. She was gone. He would never see her again.

* * *

 _The Day Before_

The sun had barely risen when Marianne walked along the outer fence of the farm. She couldn't shake the image of Randall kneeling in the barn, whimpering and pleading for his life while Rick pointed his gun at the boy's head. He had been so close to death and their problem was almost over but the image finally disappeared as a small group of walkers came into sight, some of them eating one of Hershel's cattle. She was far enough away that they didn't see her.

She spotted a break in the fence and she knew it would happen sooner or later. They needed a bigger fence but that would take weeks, probably months to build.

Marianne ran back to the house and was out of breath when she entered it and found Hershel, also an early riser, eating breakfast.

"Walkers broke through the fence. East side of the property."

Hershel immediately put down his spoon and stood up. "We need to wake the others."

Dale and Carol were already up and they helped rouse the rest of the group.

"We knew this might happen," Rick said. "Shane, Daryl, Marianne, T-Dog. Drive out there and take care of it."

"We need to check the rest of the fences," Marianne said. "I can't do it by myself anymore. Takes too long."

"We'll do that too. And no one goes wandering off on their own," Rick announced. "Try to stay within sight of the camp and house. We don't know how many got in."

They piled into the truck and Marianne told them where to go. By the time they killed the walkers and returned Hershel had decided to let them all move into the house.

"Gonna be tight, sixteen people in one house," Rick said.

"Don't worry about that," Hershel said. "With the swamp hardening, the creek drying up."

"With fifty head of cattle on the property, we might as well be ringin' a damn dinner bell," Maggie said.

"She's right," Hershel agreed. "We should've moved you in a while ago."

Rick began handing out instructions and assigning people tasks. When he didn't give Marianne anything specific to do she walked off with Beth and Maggie, carrying a few things to the house.

She imagined they looked like worker ants, swarming the vehicles and carrying stuff into the house to unpack. The amount of belongings the group had accumulated seemed so much bigger now that they had to take most of it into the house and the Grimes' especially seemed to have a lot. Marianne had two bags and Daryl had even less. It only took her one trip to bring all of their stuff in.

* * *

Randall escaped and attacked Shane. That's what the man told them, stumbling out of the woods with his bloody face and missing gun. Marianne stared at him with narrowed eyes. Something didn't feel right. Like his bullshit story about Otis. This felt the same but this time she wouldn't dismiss it.

Rick sprung into action. "Hershel, T-Dog, Dale. Get everybody back in the house. Glenn, Daryl. Come with us."

"Just let him go. That was the plan wasn't it, to just let him go?" Carol asked.

"The plan was to cut him loose far away from here, not on our front step with a gun," Rick said.

"Don't go out there. Y'all know what can happen." The men didn't pay Carol any heed.

Marianne was still mad at Rick but she walked up to him and told him anyways. "Be careful." He had a confused look in his eyes again, one she has seen before, like she was a puzzle he couldn't figure out. Good luck with that, she thought. She couldn't even figure herself out most of the time.

He walked away, his attention back on his mission, but he looked over his shoulder at Marianne. She kept her face blank, unreadable. It was a face that could drive a cop crazy during an interrogation. She was good at that.

Rick gave out final instructions before stalking off into the woods after Randall with Shane, Daryl and Glenn. "Get everybody back in the house. Lock all the doors and stay put."

The rest of the group rushed into the house. Marianne was the last one in and paused to look at where the men had entered the woods. All was still. She closed the door, locked it, and turned her attention to the agitated people inside. Carol looked worried sick and Lori was trying her best to calm her down but Marianne could tell her patience was being stretched. Lori kept looking out the window, clearly having something or someone else on her mind. Whether it was Rick, Shane, or both, Marianne couldn't tell.

The first floor was still a mess with everyone's belongings unorganized. Marianne didn't unpack her stuff and only bothered to put it in a corner of Maggie's room. The other woman had offered earlier but Marianne could tell she wasn't Maggie's first choice for a roommate. She brought her cot with her, not sure if Maggie had intended to share her bed too.

When she went back downstairs it looked like people were calming down a little and finding small tasks to do. Patricia, Beth, and Carol were in the kitchen fixing dinner. T-Dog and Jimmy were making circuits of the house, looking out of different windows to get a complete view of the surrounding area. Hershel was stocking the basement with food and water like he had mentioned earlier in the day that he would and Dale was helping. Carl disappeared upstairs with Shane's binoculars and Lori didn't seem to notice. Maggie was pulling out extra blankets and pillows, piling them on the dining room table.

Marianne paced and occasionally looked out a window. She tugged on the hem of her jacket. Being trapped inside made her antsy. She checked to make sure her Ruger was fully loaded and tucked it in the back of her pants. It was getting dark and not caring that she wasn't helping anyone out, she went back upstairs into Maggie's room to get a better vantage point before the sun completely set.

There was a moment, when she had her back to the window, that she thought she heard a gunshot. She quickly turned around but knew she wouldn't get any answers. About a minute passed and she heard it again. She bounded downstairs and surreptitiously pulled T-Dog and Dale aside. Hershel wasn't in sight and she didn't want to search for him.

"I heard two gunshots."

"When?" Dale asked, his brow furrowed.

"Right before I came down."

"We should tell the others," T-Dog said.

"No. They'll panic. We don't need people leavin' the house. Tell Hershel and that's it. All we can do is sit and wait, even though I hate it," Marianne said.

Sitting around and waiting was exactly what the group was doing when Daryl and Glenn finally walked in.

Daryl glanced around the room. "Rick and Shane ain't back?"

"No," Lori answered.

"We heard a shot," Daryl said.

"I heard two. It don't feel right," Marianne said.

"Maybe they found Randall," Lori suggested.

"We found him," Daryl said.

"Is he back in the shed?" Maggie asked.

"He's a walker," Daryl said.

"Did you find the walker that bit him?" Hershel asked.

"No, the weird thing is he wasn't bit." Glenn answered solemnly.

"His neck was broke," added Daryl. "The thing is, Shane and Randall's tracks were right on top of each other. And Shane ain't no tracker, so he didn't come up behind him. They were together."

The first thing that came to Marianne's mind was the Shane had taken Randall into the woods and killed him. But why? She glanced out the window. Rick. He was alone with Rick.

"Would you please get back out there, find Rick and Shane and find out what on earth is going on?" Lori pleaded Daryl.

"You got it."

Marianne followed Daryl outside with every intention to go with him. No matter how capable she knew he was, she didn't want him out there alone with Shane wandering around.

Andrea and Glenn walked onto the porch behind them and all four of them stood in shock. Past the barn the biggest herd of walkers they'd ever seen was making its way towards the house. Marianne scanned the field trying to estimate how many they were. She didn't like the number.

The rest of the group joined them on the porch and Hershel quickly told Patricia to turn the lights off.

"Maybe they're just passing like the herd on the highway. Should we just go inside?" Glenn asked, looking to Daryl and Marianne, desperate for someone to tell him the situation wasn't as bleak as it seemed.

"Unless there's a tunnel downstairs I don't know about," Daryl said.

"They'll rip through the house when they find out we're in there," Marianne added.

Lori rushed towards them. "Carl's gone. He was upstairs. I can't find him. He's supposed to be upstairs. I'm not leaving without my boy."

"We're not," Carol said sounding just as distressed as Lori. "We're gonna look again. We're gonna find him." The two women went into the house at the same time that Maggie came out with the bag of guns which she opened and began passing them out.

Daryl and Marianne watched the group preparing to fight. "I've got the number, it's no use," Daryl said.

"You can go if you want," Hershel told him.

"You gonna take 'em all on?" Daryl asked.

"We have guns. We have cars," Hershel said. Marianne thought he was crazy but the whole world was insane so she guessed he fit right in.

"Kill as many as we can. And we'll use the cars to lead the rest off the farm," Andrea said. For Marianne, this was the second best plan. The first was to pack up and leave before they were killed.

"Are you serious?" Daryl and Marianne asked at the same time.

"This is my farm. I'll die here," Hershel said.

"All right. It's as good a night as any," Daryl said as he hopped over the porch railing with his crossbow in hand. Marianne groaned inside and followed him. She knew she was going to regret this.

They split up in the vehicles. Andrea and T-Dog took the blue truck. Dale, predictably, disappeared inside the RV. Glenn and Maggie stayed together while Marianne ended up in Maggie's car with Jimmy driving since she was a better shot. They all briefly followed Daryl away from the house and then took off in different directions.

"The barn's on fire," Jimmy said.

"I can see."

"You think it was Rick and Shane?"

"Probably." Marianne rolled down the window. "Drive steady. We don't wanna waste bullets."

Gunshots rang through the air and walkers began dropping. Marianne didn't have any time to focus on anything other than making head shots. Despite Jimmy's efforts the car would jerk every now and then. Marianne cursed when she missed a walker for the second time.

"Drive a little slower Jimmy."

The car slowed down but stayed fast enough to evade the walkers near them. Marianne decided to sit on the edge of the rolled down window and hung outside. Her shooting was steadier with her arms resting on the top of the car.

Her gun clicked. She was out of bullets and dug into a pocket for more ammo. Her balance was precarious and she swayed back and forth. All of sudden there was a great jolt and Marianne fell out of the car. The wind was knocked out of her when she landed on her back but at least she hadn't dropped her newly reloaded gun.

She looked over at the car and saw Jimmy hit the brakes when he must have realized she was gone. Marianne staggered to her feet, shooting a few walkers as she sprinted back to the car. She opened the door and dived in.

"Go, go, go!"

Jimmy took off again with some difficulty. There were walkers on the hood that blocked most of the view out of the windshield and he couldn't shake them off. He swerved to the right trying to get the walkers to slide off and then made a sharp left to avoid the fence. There were more thumps as he ran into a group of walkers neither of them had seen. The car stopped and Jimmy hit the gas pedal but they weren't going anywhere.

They were pinned against the fence on one side and Marianne couldn't open her door wide enough to slip out. She glanced at Jimmy. He was pale but his jaw was clenched. She could make out determination under the fear on his face.

"Jimmy, we can't stay in here. We're goin' to make a run for it before they pile up too bad," Marianne said as she climbed into the backseat and sat behind him, her hand tensed on the door handle.

The banging grew louder. More walkers were pressing against the windows and she wondered if they could even get the doors open before dead hands grabbed them and teeth tore into their flesh.

She surveyed the area as best as she could. Marianne didn't see any of the other cars, except for the RV which was now on fire and she briefly wondered if Dale had made it out. She spotted a path clear enough to make it to the house without being swarmed. Help wasn't coming. It was now or never. "We're gonna head to the house. If things go bad don't be a dumbass. And don't waste your time killin' if you don't have to. Got it?"

"Got it."

"Good." She took a deep breath. "Ready? On three." Jimmy nodded and took hold of the door handle with his left hand. "One." She unlocked her door. "Two." Jimmy adjusted his grip on his shotgun. "Three."

They had to put their full weight into it as they pushed the walkers away with the doors but this only gave them seconds to move before more stumbled towards them. Both of them were soon firing bullets into heads and the bodies piled up. Maybe making a run for it had been a mistake. Jimmy was having a better time of it than she was. Less walkers had set their sights on him than her.

One of them, a man who had somehow managed to keep a John Deere cap on his head, tripped over the bodies and fell to its knees but quickly began crawling towards her, reaching for her legs. Before she could do anything it grabbed onto her and pulled. Marianne lost her footing and fell to the ground. Her back banged against the base of the car. She grimaced.

Just as she shot the walker in the head another one, an old woman with straggly grey hair, began to fall. Marianne instinctively shielded herself with her right arm and the walker's head landed in her lap with the rest of its body pinning her legs down. Before she could reposition her right arm to aim her gun at its head, the walker grabbed it.

The old woman bit down.

* * *

 **A/N: So there it is. I can't promise you when the next one will come out. I have a rough outline of what's going to happen for the next few chapters and a few paragraphs written here and there.**

 **Also, I really hope some of you review. Four reviews for thirteen chapters is a little sad, especially considering for most chapters I've been getting over 100 visitors the day they come out. I definitely won't be holding chapters hostage for reviews. It'd just be nice to get some more feedback.**


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: Here it is! I hope it doesn't disappoint.**

 **Thank you for the follows and the favorites. And a big thanks to lizzydahia1, specialsmiley1315, and wumbo133 for their reviews.**

* * *

 **Chapter Fifteen**

Marianne jerked her arm away from the walker and out came its teeth. The walker's dentures lost its grip on her and fell to the ground leaving behind walker slime on the sleeve of her light jacket. Marianne almost laughed but she had to keep it together. There was no time to assess her physical well being.

"Run! Push through!" She yelled as she scrambled to squeeze underneath the car and when she was under she quickly pulled a dead walker closer to her, preventing the others from reaching her, but there was nothing to stop them from coming at her head and feet. Just as the thought passed through Marianne's mind a walker appeared, trying to crawl under the car at her feet.

The cramped space made her reaction time slower but she shot it in the head the first time. The second walker that made it under the car came from behind her head, trying to grab onto her ponytail. It got close enough for her to awkwardly stab it with the knife she'd taken from her belt. It happened three more times and soon the front and back of the car were also blocked by dead walkers. To her right was the fence and thankfully there were none trying to break through it.

The smartest thing she could do for now was to wait it out and hope the walkers forgot about her and moved on. The barn was still on fire and still a distraction. A few of them would've broken off to follow Jimmy but she wasn't happy about that.

She wondered if Jimmy had made it to the house and if so, how many walkers had followed him. Marianne hadn't heard anymore gunshots but she also hadn't heard agonized screaming so it was a safe bet he was still alive. At least for now.

Concluding it was safe enough to momentarily put down her gun, she maneuvered her arm out of her jacket. She held it close to her face. Whatever moonlight there was barely reached her under the car. This time Marianne did laugh. There was a bruise forming where the teeth had clamped onto her but the skin wasn't broken. Maggie's jacket may have just saved her life.

Marianne couldn't afford to close her eyes no matter how much she needed to sleep. Gradually, the clawing stopped and the groaning faded as the walkers wandered off, either forgetting her or searching for easier prey.

It must be noon, she thought. Despite the cooling weather it was still hot enough to make her sweaty and uncomfortable, even after she'd taken the jacket completely off. It wouldn't be safe to move until the cover of night. The grass kept making her arms itch and she wiped away the sweat running down the side of her face, not looking forward to the rest of the day.

 _Stay in the house Jimmy. I'm coming for you._

With nothing else to occupy her, she thought about the rest of the group and all the horrible things that could've happened to them. She could hear their screams and picture their bodies torn apart by walkers, but Marianne still had hope that some of them made it out alive. They were in cars and they had guns. She also reminded herself that she hadn't seen any of the cars when she was trapped in theirs with Jimmy. Marianne had no doubt in her mind that the survivors had found each other. They would meet on the highway where they had lost Sophia. That's exactly what she would've done.

Then it hit her. If they were together again they'd know she and Jimmy were missing. Daryl would come back for her as soon as he found out, but no one had showed up. She would've heard the cars or the motorcycle. Did that mean they didn't reunite on the highway or did it mean that Daryl was dead? He'd come for her no matter what. He would. She refused to accept that her brother was dead, so it could only mean the group was split up. That was the only answer.

The heat was getting to her. The stench from the bodies surrounding her was almost unbearable. Marianne was thirstier by the hour and her mouth was getting dry. Mercifully the sun began to set and soon it was time to make her way to the house.

She turned her attention to the walker she had pulled towards her the night before. Her heart jumped a tiny bit when she noticed the walker was a teenage girl who couldn't have been older than Beth. Taking a slow, steadying breath she began the task of rolling the girl away from her far enough to make a space big enough to escape.

She took her time, not wanting to spend another night and day trapped under the car. Marianne looked around to see if any walkers were nearby and decided that they were a safe enough distance away to expose herself. Besides, she had to get it over with sometime. She scooted her way out, trying not to think about the bodies she was on top of. When she was completely out, while still lying down, she surreptitiously looked around again. None of the walkers had noticed her.

When she stood up she stayed as low to the ground as possible and moved fast. The distance to the house seemed longer than it actually was and Marianne kept looking around at the walkers trying not to trip in the process. She reached the porch when she noticed two walkers were turning her way but hadn't yet realized she was alive.

She opened the screen door with great care and only as wide as she needed to slip through. Marianne let the door rest against her back and as she kept glancing to the field of walkers she took hold of the door handle and slowly turned it. There was no resistance and she thanked Jimmy for not locking it. As carefully as was humanly possible, she opened the door. It was dark inside but there was a figure pointing a shotgun at her head.

"It's me," she whispered as she silently closed both doors. Jimmy dropped his arms and as her eyes adjusted the details of the teenager's face became clear.

He looked relieved and some of the tension in shoulders disappeared.

"I knew you weren't dead," he said, a grin appeared but she couldn't return it.

"I figured you made it too. Glad you didn't do somethin' stupid like leavin' the house."

"I wouldn't leave you behind." Marianne started to smile but in a second her mind turned towards someplace darker.

"Well, you seem to be the only one."

Jimmy looked down. "Yeah, I noticed." He scuffed his feet on the wood floor. "You think anyone made it out alive?"

"Without a doubt."

"You think Beth is out there somewhere?" Jimmy looked back up at her hopefully.

"I can't guarantee it but she probably is."

"Good." The boy nodded.

"Enough small talk. We need a plan. Let's head upstairs."

Marianne went straight to the upstairs bathroom and turned the water on. She lowered her head into the sink and drank directly from the stream of water. When she had her fill, she straightened up and noticed that Jimmy was watching her with some amusement.

"You try spendin' twenty four hours stuck under a car and see how you feel."

He held up his hands. "I didn't say a word."

"And it best stay that way. You'll survive longer."

"Yes ma'am."

"For Christ's sake don't call me that." He smiled and shrugged. At least his sense of humor was intact. She didn't need a depressed and hopeless teenager dragging both of them down.

They settled into the bedroom he'd been staying in and where he'd already hung a blanket over the window. Marianne looked at it with approval.

"I say we leave right before the sun starts risin'. That'll give us time to rest and pack up and we'll still have the cover of night when we drive out of here."

"With what?"

"The truck I stole. The supplies I took are still in it but we'll still pack up everything we can in here."

"You should rest. I can start packin' and I'll get you in two hours."

Marianne pursed her lips as she thought about it. Making her way to the house had given her a second wind but she knew that wouldn't last long.

"Can I trust you?"

Jimmy nodded eagerly. "I'll start with the food."

"If you get done with that go through Hershel's medical supplies and don't forget to pack some warm clothes. And stay away from the windows. And eat. Only perishables. And fill up those water containers. And look for ammo."

"You got it." He stood up to leave.

"Two hours only. I'm serious. No matter how comfortable I look, you wake me up or I will skin you alive."

"I promise."

Jimmy left the room and Marianne closed her eyes before she completely lay down. Her head hit the pillow and she was out.

"We got everything?" Marianne asked for the third time. Jimmy had fulfilled his promise and woke her up after two hours. She sorted through everything he'd piled up and already packed. Then, Marianne did two sweeps of the house looking for anything useful before taking a short break to eat, to clean off most of the grime on her and to change into clean clothes before she packed for herself, stealing some of Maggie's clean clothes while she was at it.

After all that, it was time and both of them were carrying everything they possibly could.

"Remember, just throw the stuff in the back real quick and start up the truck. Turn the lights off. Don't worry about me. I'll make it fine this time."

Marianne peaked out the window one last time and signaled Jimmy to open the door. They shot out of the house, one after the other, and sprinted to the truck which thankfully had been parked relatively close to the house.

Despite their precautions they hadn't escaped notice. The closest of the walkers seemed to synchronously turn towards them but Jimmy did as he was told and they were driving off of the farm before the walkers could get even close. This time, Jimmy managed not to run into any of them.

She breathed a sigh of relief when they arrived at the highway. Jimmy slowed down to snake through the maze of cars to reach where the group had left the sign for Sophia. They had yet to come across any walkers on the road. As they neared their destination Marianne could tell that no one was waiting for them. She hadn't expected to find anyone there but it still made her heart clench.

"No one's here," Jimmy said.

"Nope," she said, not betraying her feelings. "Let's look around real quick and then we'll be on our way."

"To where?"

Marianne didn't answer as she grabbed her bow and left the truck. She walked over to the car and saw most of Sophia's message was smeared. The sight didn't help her spirits and she lowered her gaze, spotting something else.

A message was written in the layer of dirt on the car. 'EAST' was in big letters and under that was a smaller 'DD' and under that, as if it was an afterthought, was '10 left.'

Ten what? Ten people, she answered to herself. So ten of them had been here together. That left four more, excluding her and Jimmy, that hadn't made it there.

"Daryl." Her heart soared but then plummeted. He had left her behind but he'd had enough hope that she was alive that he'd left her a message. Marianne's vision blurred. He could've gone back.

Jimmy appeared at her side and she pointed at the message. "They were here."

"How long do you think they waited?"

"Not long enough."

"That just means we have to find them. We'll head east like it says. I know the perfect road."

Marianne had Jimmy show it to her on the map and he was right. The road was a straight shot east but there was nothing along it for miles and it looked like it'd be a day's drive to get to the next town. She hoped they had enough in the tank to make it there. They didn't have anything to siphon gas with.

Feeling a little better about their situation, Marianne folded the map and handed it to Jimmy. "I'm drivin' this time. You're in charge of the radio."

* * *

 **A/N: This chapter is the shortest one yet but I liked leaving it on a joke.**

 **I hope you're not upset with me and I hope you don't feel like I copped out on the bite. I did mention her jacket in the last chapter so it didn't appear out of nowhere and I think the whole dentures thing could be plausible. I couldn't believe it when the idea popped into my head and I couldn't resist using it.**

 **Reviews are always amazing to get. Plus, I'm very curious to know what everyone thinks about the dentures. Was it a hit or a miss?**

 **Also, I will be posting the next chapter in 2-3 days.**


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N: A thank you to Hong En, specialsmiley1315, wumbo133, and mishka2184 for reviewing!**

I do not own the Walking Dead.

* * *

 **Chapter Sixteen**

They'd been driving for hours without stopping when, in the late afternoon, Marianne suddenly hit the brakes.

"I thought we weren't doin' bathroom breaks yet."

"That's not why I stopped. I saw somethin' I want to check out."

"Saw what? There's nothin' out here."

"You should pay more attention. Now follow me and watch out for walkers."

The two of them left the truck. Marianne took the keys with her, mostly out of habit and partially because she was paranoid that someone would steal it, but kept the truck unlocked.

Marianne led him down the road a few car lengths and then veered right. The stone ruins of a long gone building came into sight.

"They could've camped out here last night," she said as she climbed to stand on top of one the walls. A welcome sight greeted her. There was a huge mess of footprints surrounding a recent campfire. Jimmy stood next to her on the wall and she pointed it out.

"How do we know it's them?"

"We don't but I got a good feelin' about it."

As they walked back she took note of the several sets of tire tracks but it was hard to tell how many there had been.

"They'll be in the town comin' up but we'll be careful in case it ain't them," Marianne told Jimmy as they got back inside the truck after taking a five minute break.

With even more confidence that they would soon be reunited with their group they continued their journey. Marianne looked at the gas level estimating they'd have just enough to reach the town and hopefully find the supplies they desperately needed to siphon more fuel. If not, they'd have to find a new car.

After a long silence Jimmy spoke. "I hope Beth's okay. I mean, I hope everyone is okay."

"I get what you mean. But don't get too excited," she said, not able to follow her own advice even after trying but she kept her poker face on.

"Who do you think made it?" Jimmy asked. Marianne hadn't stopped thinking about it since she read Daryl's message.

"Daryl." The only person that mattered. "Lori, Carol, Patricia, Beth and Hershel were at the house and all the cars were gone except for this truck." She paused. "But Hershel said he'd die there so maybe he did."

A lone walker appeared in the road and Marianne drove around it. "Carl was missing," she said. "I think he left to find Rick and if he did, Rick would've gotten Carl out alive no matter what. Then there's Glenn, who'd get Maggie out somehow even if he died doin' it." Marianne sighed. It was worse speculating out loud than doing so in her head. "I just don't know."

A sign appeared that said the next town was coming up in five miles. The somber mood dissipated a little and Jimmy had a goofy smile on his face but Marianne was getting apprehensive.

They made it there and quickly found the main street where she parked in front of the small grocery store. Calling it a town was generous. She was surprised it was even on the map they had, which wasn't as detailed as she liked. She wanted to find a better one.

Both of them got out of the truck and looked around. The street was littered with about a dozen dead walkers. She didn't recognize any of the parked cars but it couldn't hurt to take a look around.

"We can each take a side. It's faster," Jimmy said.

"No, that's a good way to get you killed. You're comin' with me."

"I can handle myself." Jimmy stood up straighter, unconsciously trying to look more capable.

"Sure you can."

"You're not in charge of me."

Marianne raised her eyebrows at him. "Of course I am."

"But-"

"I said no." She stared him down and Jimmy relented.

Marianne decided to do the grocery store first. She knocked on the window and waited more patiently than Jimmy did. Nothing came. She opened the door and Jimmy followed her inside.

"Stay back." Marianne ignored his frown. She nocked an arrow and made a circuit around the store, peeking down all of the aisles and noticing the shelves were empty. Lack of food wasn't a problem yet but it was still a concern that gnawed at her in the back of her mind.

In the freezer section in the back of the store she found a dead walker wearing denim overalls. She stood next to it and bent down for closer inspection. Some of the blood was still wet.

She went back to the front of the store where Jimmy was looking out the window while waiting for her.

"Anything?" Marianne asked.

"No walkers. No people."

"Come on. We'll take a peek in the back."

Jimmy perked up a little and had an annoying pep in his step. They reached the back door but it was locked. Marianne, once again, told Jimmy to stay put while she looked behind the cash register counter for keys but came up empty.

"Can't find the keys. Let's go."

When they went outside Marianne walked over to the closest dead walker and inspected this one too. It came as no surprise when she found some wet blood. She decided to keep this bit of information from Jimmy, at least for the time being.

They searched the rest of the main street buildings faster than she expected. There were no walkers to kill since they were already dead but there was also hardly any in the first place. It seemed like most of the people that lived here had fled.

They moved on to the nearest houses.

The first one they tackled was a small whitewashed clapboard house with green trimming. It would be good practice for Jimmy. From how the day was going there was slim chance a living walker was inside and Jimmy needed to learn how to clear a building instead of just following Marianne's lead.

They stood on the front porch. "What's first?" She asked.

"Knock on the door." Jimmy looked like he was going to laugh, appreciating the irony of what they had to do. You used to knock on doors for a completely different reason.

Marianne gave him a shove. "Take this seriously or you're seriously dead."

"Sorry."

Marianne stared at Jimmy who was just standing there staring at a sunflower themed welcome sign hung up on the front door. "Well, are ya gonna do it? We don't got all day."

He knocked, his neck and face turning red and not from the sun. They waited but nothing came and Jimmy went to open the door.

"Get your knife ready," Marianne reminded him. She had warned them there would be grave consequences if he used his gun when he didn't have to.

Jimmy slowly opened the door and entered the house. His grip on his knife was so tight his knuckles were white.

Marianne figured out the layout of the place in no time at all. They had stepped into a living room and in the back was the kitchen and dining room combo. The hallway to the right led to a bedroom and bathroom.

He went through the house and Marianne gave him a pointer every now and then but all things considered he was doing well. Now she needed to see how he reacted when they found a walker.

Jimmy opened the bedroom closet and looked inside. "It's all clear."

"Good, now it's time for the fun part." They searched the house but it was obvious someone had already been there.

They found the rest of closest houses were also picked over. All of the cars they managed to find keys to and tried to start didn't have any gas. It almost didn't matter since the mechanic shop and the houses' garages were a bust but, even so, they still needed to find a working car. Nothing good was left so they cautiously moved farther into the neighborhood.

She stopped the truck in front a short street with a cul-de-sac at the end but didn't like the feel of it. There was only one road out and they could get trapped down there.

"We'll take the next one," she said more to herself than to Jimmy.

Marianne parked the car at the beginning of the next street and looked down it. There were no walkers and she didn't recognize any of the cars.

They were on the porch of their third house, which was small and two storied, when Marianne decided it was another good time to let Jimmy practice.

"You take the lead."

The teenager stared at her like she'd grown a second head. "Are you jokin'?"

"Nope. Now get to it."

Jimmy did fine clearing the first floor even though she had to remind him to check the coat closet. Now all that was left was the second floor. Marianne didn't know why, but clearing second floors in houses always put her more on edge than usual.

They crept up the stairs and a small hallway came into view with four closed doors. Marianne guessed they were two bedrooms, a bathroom, and a linen closet.

Jimmy chose the first door and looked to her for approval but Marianne didn't give away what she was thinking and stayed in the hallway, letting Jimmy go into the bedroom alone. All was clear and he moved to the door across the hall which turned out to be the bathroom. He opened the shower curtains without Marianne having to tell him to.

The third door was a closet and now they only had one left. Like all the rest Jimmy slowly opened the door and cautiously looked inside. He jerked back and almost slammed the door shut making Marianne frown. She didn't expect this reaction since he had handled plenty of walkers on the farm.

"Walker," he mouthed.

"Kill it." Jimmy nodded and Marianne got her bow ready just in case. He began opening the door again and suddenly an arm shot out of the room and a hand latched onto his shoulder. Jimmy yelped and fell forward to the floor, taking the walker with him.

Marianne kept her arrow aimed at the walker's head but didn't release it, letting Jimmy figure this one out.

He quickly recovered and rolled away from the walker as far as he could before rising to his knees. The walker reached for him but before it could take hold of him again, Jimmy jammed his knife into its head.

After that, in the rest of the houses, she kept back, always ready to step in if she needed to, and let Jimmy take the easy kills of the few walkers they came across. The duo had some luck. They found more supplies than they could carry and were able to start a couple of cars but each had less than a quarter of a tank left. She told Jimmy they'd come back for one of them if they didn't find a better car.

"It's getting dark. This'll be our last stop." Marianne had made a full circuit of the neighborhood constantly on the lookout for the group's cars. They had to stop once to dispatch five walkers and Jimmy proved that he was getting better at using his knife. She finally stopped in front of a promising looking house with a two door garage.

Marianne cleared the house herself since she was faster. She killed a walker that was hanging out in the master bathroom.

"All clear." Jimmy had waited by the open front door. She raised her hand and a key ring was hanging on her index finger. "There's a hatchback in the garage."

They went into the house and locked the door. Marianne led him to another one that opened to the garage. As she was walking around the car to the passenger side she threw him the keys which he deftly caught with his left hand.

The car beeped when Jimmy unlocked the doors. They opened them at the same time and slid into their seats. It was the moment of truth. He put the key in the ignition and turned.

The car came to life and Marianne only had eyes for the fuel gauge. The needle pointed at 'F' and she nearly wanted to high-five Jimmy, who looked at her with a huge smile on his face.

Their success didn't distract them for long and they got to work. Since there was only the white hatchback in it and room for another, Jimmy backed the truck inside and Marianne closed the garage door.

Marianne made sure the house was locked down. She closed the curtains for all of the windows and pushed a sofa in front of the back door but left the front door unblocked. While she was doing this Jimmy had begun transferring all of their supplies from the truck to their new car. Marianne soon joined him.

"If they were here, and I think they were, they made a quick and efficient search for supplies then left." She admired this efficiency but also found herself annoyed that they had moved on so soon. There was shelter here and barely any walkers; surely they could've stayed the night. Marianne guessed most of them would want to but someone was in a real hurry and she had a good idea of who it was.

"You really think they were?" Jimmy placed another bag in the back while Marianne grabbed two water containers from the truck bed.

"Yeah, if it was another group they would've stuck around. This place is nice enough."

"Why didn't ours stay?" He placed the last bag in the car and shut the back door.

"It's late. Let's eat and we'll push on first light tomorrow."

* * *

Rick was worried about Daryl. The man hadn't said more than ten words since they left the farm and wouldn't acknowledge anyone's existence unless he had to. He knew Daryl would take losing Marianne hard but it was worse seeing it play out in front of him. Maybe they should've gone back.

No. He squashed the idea. He had needed to get his wife and son somewhere safe but then, what about Marianne? She was Daryl's family. Guilt sucker punched him and he tried to reason his way out of it. He needed to keep _all_ of them safe. They'd lost enough people already. Besides, T-Dog and Lori had seen Marianne and Jimmy disappear in a swarm of walkers nobody could survive.

He'd talk to Daryl when he returned from hunting. That's what he'd do. Feeling a little better Rick had a burst of energy and decided to walk the perimeter again even though T-Dog was already on watch. After ransacking the small town and refueling their cars they continued on, heading northeast, until they found a small, abandoned farmhouse to hole up in for the night. He was on his second round when Daryl appeared out of the trees with a string of squirrels.

Rick hurried over to him before Daryl could get within earshot of the house.

"Daryl, we need to talk." The disgruntled hunter turned around looking none too pleased that Rick had initiated a conversation but stopped walking anyways and glared at the grass in front of Rick's feet. "I know you're havin' a hard time and I'm grateful you've stayed." Daryl's expression didn't change but his eyes glanced up at Rick and then went right back down to the ground. "We all miss her."

Daryl scoffed."You barely even liked her."

"We had our differences but I cared about her and I care about you."

"Y'all only wanted us around 'cause we were useful to ya."

"That's not true."

"Don't tell me it ain't." Daryl finally looked Rick in the eye. "If it was Lori or Carl ya would've gone back."

Rick frowned, not at Daryl but at himself. Daryl was right. This time Rick was the one to look away, ashamed of the truth.

"People are waitin'." Daryl took off towards the house leaving him behind.

* * *

 **A/N: I know it's a slow one but next chapter something big happens so stay tune! It'll be posted in 2-3 days.**

 **Also, I hope a smidgen of Jimmy's personality sort of made an appearance. He was hard to write since all Marianne wants to do is order him around.**

 **In other news, my dream last night was interrupted by an appearance from Daryl who asked me for a piece of gum before promptly disappearing, leaving me a little confused. I think it's because this story's been on my mind more than usual lately.**


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N: Thank you for the follows and the favorites. And thank you to Hongo En for reviewing. I enjoy your enthusiasm.**

Disclaimer: I do not own the Walking Dead.

* * *

 **Chapter Seventeen**

Like Marianne said, she and Jimmy were on their way again right after the sun had risen. They drove east until they came to a fork in the road.

The road on the left heading south looked promising but the right one heading north also had its merits. She studied their map intently going through a checklist. There was a growing herd west of them that were heading in a northerly direction but that didn't mean a well placed flock of birds getting spooked and bursting out of the trees would turn them south.

It was a hard decision but she managed to make up her mind. "We'll go left."

And that was how it went. Marianne studied the map and chose the route she thought the group would take, trying to put herself in Rick's shoes. He'd be looking for a more permanent residence for Lori to have the baby and trying his best to make sure the group had shelter every night.

She worried she was wrong but didn't let Jimmy see it. In front of him she was confident in every move they made. In turn, he was confident in her and it scared Marianne a little that he depended on her. She was responsible for him whether or not she wanted to be.

"You're doin' it wrong." Marianne said looking critically at the animal snare Jimmy was making. She almost regretted her offer to teach him.

"I'm doin' it exactly how you showed me."

"No you ain't. That's the wrong knot."

"What difference does it make?"

"The difference between a full belly and an empty one. Redo it," she said a little too sharply.

"Okay, okay." Marianne watched as Jimmy redid it and found the snare adequate when she inspected it.

They started heading back to the house they chose to stay in for the night. "Now if we catch anything and get to it before the walkers I'll teach you to skin and gut it. I'll even let you kill it."

"Lookin' forward to it."

"Is that sarcasm I hear?"

"Maybe." Jimmy glanced over at Marianne to see how she'd react. She wanted to be annoyed at his flippancy and tell him off but after a week with Jimmy she didn't let it. It was too exhausting and she had better things to do.

"Didn't anyone tell you to respect your elders?"

"You're only a few years older than me."

Marianne let out a short laugh. "If I didn't know any better I'd think you were tryin' to compliment me. I've got a good decade on ya."

Jimmy stopped walking. "You're not serious."

"As serious as a walker bite. Merle gotta a kick out of callin' me 'baby face' for the longest time." This time Jimmy laughed but mentioning Merle dampened Marianne's mood. She had started out with two brothers but now they were all separated. She didn't even know if Merle was still alive and she could say the same thing about Daryl but she wasn't going to.

* * *

The twelfth day after the farm had fallen Marianne and Jimmy were lucky enough to switch to their fourth car with half a tank while the one they had was running on empty, but their new car ran dry before they could reach the next town.

"We'll have to downsize. Some lucky bastards'll come across our supplies," Marianne said, opening the trunk.

"I hope they're not assholes," Jimmy said, making Marianne grin.

He wasn't looking forward to having to go on foot and even less so at abandoning over half of what they'd accumulated. To him, every single item was essential to their survival. Marianne wasn't happy about it either but it was an easier pill to swallow for her. It'd be like camping with Daryl, except instead of Daryl there was Jimmy and instead of killing buck they'd be killing dead people.

"Relax, if it makes you feel any better we'll stuff the best of what's left in the trunk and lock it. Maybe we'll be back this way someday."

They pushed the car off the road and hid it the best they could.

Nearby they camped for the first time without the safety of a working car waiting for them in case they needed to make a quick getaway. Watches were all the more important. Marianne always took the first one and Jimmy should've been asleep already. He had an easier time of it than Marianne but tonight he seemed restless.

"You best get to sleep now. It's late. I won't let 'em get you."

Jimmy stared into the dying fire where all that was left were smoldering embers. However cold it was getting she didn't let them keep a fire going at night yet.

"I barely know a thing about you," he said quietly. "You don't talk."

"I talk."

"You order me around."

She shrugged. "That's still talkin'." Marianne looked at him. What's with this mood all of a sudden? From her experience, teenage boys weren't interested in talking the way Jimmy wanted to right now. "Look, this ain't a sleepover and we're not gonna be best friends. I'm busy keepin' both of us alive."

"I can survive by myself." His sullen voice made an appearance.

"Maybe a few days but not this long." She could see this made him angry and she probably shouldn't have said it but he needed to know that he wasn't ready to be on his own. Jimmy finally got into the sleeping bag and turned his back to her. Marianne gave her full attention to the dark forest around them.

A couple of hours passed with no trouble as she walked around the perimeter of their tiny camp, stopping every few minutes to stare intently into the dark.

She heard them before she saw them. The rustling wasn't the wind and only meant one thing and she didn't stick around to see how many of them were coming.

"Jimmy, we gotta go." Marianne knelt down to shake the boy's shoulder with one hand and used the other to cover his mouth so he wouldn't make any unnecessary noise. It only took another second for him to wake up. "Shush. Walkers."

That's all the explanation he needed. He was out of the sleeping bag in a flash. Between the two of them, they grabbed everything and Marianne took off making sure Jimmy was right behind her.

Her sprint through the trees was nearly silent but Jimmy's wasn't so she slowed down to a fast walk which seemed to help. She led them to the road and they stepped out into the open but they stayed next to the tree line. If she was alone it would've been safer to stay in the woods but, with Jimmy, this way was faster. They could always duck back into the trees if they needed to.

About ten minutes passed and they hadn't slowed down because Marianne didn't want to take any chances. After a few more they literally stumbled onto a three way intersection. Both of them were breathing heavy and Marianne resisted the urge to lie down on the ground.

They could either continue straight or turn right. Marianne chose to go right. She calculated that it was the best option to get away from the herd.

Their pace eventually slowed and it was late morning when a rest stop appeared. They'd passed signs for it and kept an eye out but never expected to see it. Not expecting shelter made it less disappointing when they didn't find any. Marianne decided they wouldn't travel any further for the day.

The rest stop had picnic tables, an outhouse, and a building with showers that no longer worked but was good enough for sleeping in after they killed the cockroaches. Marianne decided they could have a fire going all night inside. There was even ventilation to keep the place clear of smoke.

Up to this point and fortunately for them, food had never been a problem. Marianne strictly rationed it and they were hungry half of the time but they weren't starving.

She looked at the remains of their dinner, two empty cans of chicken noodle soup next to their feet. "Pull out a can of peas. We'll split it."

Jimmy's face lit up. "Really?"

"Yes really. We've earned it."

The next morning they were in the best moods they'd been in for over a week. Neither of them were as hungry as they usually were and the shelter of the small concrete building combined with their fuller stomachs led them to a more restful sleep.

Marianne woke up to chirping birds, a good sign since walkers usually scared them away. She rolled over to find that the fire was almost out but it didn't matter. Not this time. The morning weather wasn't too hot or too cool and she actually felt like getting up to start the day.

They were usually on the road an hour after she woke up but Marianne let them linger. They deserved a lazy morning since they'd been searching nonstop for the group, never staying in one place for more than a night.

The two of them were standing face to face in the shower room. After packing everything up Marianne had decided to teach him a few tricks.

"Eye goungin' is always fun," Marianne said after another failed attempt at Jimmy trying to punch her.

"Isn't that fighting dirty?"

"You need'ta fight dirty. There's no code of honor when someone's tryin' to kill you." Jimmy nodded. "I'll show ya." They both got in a fighting stance. "We'll do it slow. You go in for the punch and I'll block it." Jimmy punched and when she blocked it they stayed in that position. "Good, now I'll use my free arm—you gotta be quick— to strike." Marianne did that in slow motion. "See how I'm holdin' my hand?"

"Where'd you learn all this?" Jimmy asked as they stepped away from each other.

"Daryl." She went to grab a canteen so she wouldn't have to look at Jimmy. "He told me he was gonna teach me how to win and he did."

"You'll see him again."

She shrugged before turning to look at him and tried to keep her voice light. "I'm countin' on it. We're gonna kick some of their asses for leavin' us behind."

Eventually they had to go. Marianne looked at the map before they left and saw that their detour meant they would have a long haul to the next town.

* * *

"Look there." Marianne pointed at something in the distance. Jimmy squinted.

"Is that a building?"

"Looks to be. It's small though."

"How can you tell?"

"Practice."

When they got closer they found out it was a gas station. It only had one pump and the building looked abandoned but, out there, that didn't mean it hadn't still been in business before the outbreak.

When they reached it Marianne took a walk around the building and scanned the area. For now, all was calm.

"Stay out here. We don't want anything sneakin' up on us."

Jimmy kept watch, facing away from the rinky-dink gas station. Marianne did the usual routine and knocked on the door. Nothing came. When she opened the door a bell jingled above her. It had barely begun to shut when she sensed something was wrong.

She raised her bow, ready to shoot. A figure shot up from behind the cashier's counter to her right. Her eyes still hadn't completely adjusted from the bright sun outside to the darkness inside. She released the arrow and narrowly missed. Marianne readied another arrow but it was too late. A gun was pressed to the back of her head.

"Put it down, nice and slow," said a rough voiced man behind her. The figure in front of her turned into a second man who also had a gun trained on her.

"No funny business," said the man in front of her as he walked out from behind the counter, all the while pointing his gun at Marianne. She lowered her bow so the arrow was pointing to the ground. The man was now standing directly in front of her and grabbed it from her hands. Marianne could see him clearly. He was foot taller than her and had a long, thin unhealthy looking face. His unwashed hair was pulled back into a short ponytail.

"This is a nice piece of equipment. Can't shoot for shit with it. I'm more of a gun kind of guy." He placed her bow on the counter. "My name's Frank and that's Will. He prefers knives."

"What's your name?" Will asked. Marianne didn't answer him and Will grabbed her hair, yanking her head back and pressing the gun to her temple.

"Answer me you little bitch or we'll go outside and kill the boy."

"Marianne." Her voice was steady. "You can take our stuff and we'll all be on our own way. There's no need for violence."

"We don't want your stuff." She could hear the smirk in Will's voice as plainly as she could see Frank's predatory smile.

"We want somethin' else from you," Frank said.

Her hands clenched into fists. Like hell they were going to do that. Frank must have noticed a change in her. Maybe he wasn't as stupid as he looked. "Take that knife off her belt," he ordered Will."And search her." She held her breath as Will gladly complied. He took away her Ruger from where it was tucked into the back of her jeans. He found a knife in an outside jacket pocket and another that she'd hidden in an inside pocket but the one in her boot stayed there.

Thinking she no longer posed a serious threat Frank lowered his gun but Will kept his pressed into her side. He tossed her Ruger to Frank but kept her knives.

"Now let's go introduce ourselves to your friend outside."

Will pushed her towards the door. "Ladies first."

When she opened the door the bell jingled again and Jimmy turned around his mouth open to say something but when he saw the two men behind Marianne he raised his gun instead.

"Jimmy, don't do anything stupid. Put the gun down," Marianne said, trying to tell him with her eyes that it'd be all right. She'd deal with these assholes and both of them would continue their trek none the worse for wear.

"Listen to the lady here boy," Frank said. "Put down your weapons." Jimmy didn't move.

"So that's how you're gonna play it," Will said.

She felt the edge of the knife and then a strong sting along her cheek. Blood ran down her face.

"Stop!" Jimmy looked horrified and quickly put his gun and two knives on the ground. Frank searched him but came up empty. She doubted Jimmy had another knife hidden somewhere.

"You know what I like Marianne?" Will asked.

"Enlighten me." _Dumbass._

"I like my women a little messed up."

"I'm not your woman," she said through gritted teeth. Will chuckled.

"Oh, you will be."

Jimmy's face paled and she guessed it had fully sunk in for him what these men's intentions were for her.

"Don't fuck her up too much. The rest of us still want her pretty."

So there was more than two. She needed to act fast before they joined up with the others.

"Enough small talk. Let's get goin'," Frank said.

"What are we gonna do with the boy?" Will asked. Marianne tensed.

"You can join us if you want," Frank offered. Marianne couldn't tell if he was serious or not.

Jimmy's face turned red. "I'd rather die." _No, don't say that._

"Fair enough." Frank aimed his gun at Jimmy and shot him twice in the stomach. With each gunshot, Marianne's body violently jerked.

Jimmy didn't make a sound as he collapsed to the ground. Blood blossomed across his shirt and ran through his fingers as he pressed his hands against his wounds. Marianne felt like she was going to throw up.

"Raise your hands where we can see 'em," Frank said calmly as if he hadn't shot a person seconds ago.

Marianne glared at Frank and she would've glared at Will if she could see him. She did as she was told and raised her hands, thankful that they weren't shaking. She needed to stay focused.

"I can promise y'all one thing."

"What's that sweetheart?" Frank asked.

"You'll both be dead soon." The two men laughed.

"Big words from a little thing like you," Will said.

They headed into the woods. Will was in the lead while Frank stayed behind Marianne, pressing his gun to her back and using a vice like grip on her shoulder to steer her.

They made her keep her hands raised and she kept pretending to trip which seemed, to her great satisfaction, to piss off Frank.

"Watch where you're goin'."

"I'm tryin'. You keep pushin' me."

"And don't make so much noise. How the hell did you survive this long without pullin' in walkers?"

She didn't answer him and apparently Frank didn't need one because they walked in silence for a few minutes before Marianne faked a fall and made him stumble. By the time he'd recovered Marianne had already slipped the knife out of her boot and up her sleeve. "Get up!"

He grabbed the back of her jacket and forcefully yanked her up. When she was on her feet again a quick jab was all she needed to plunge the knife into Frank's side. It took the men by surprise and Marianne had time to grab her Ruger from Frank before taking off.

She zigzagged in between the trees as bullets whizzed by her. Marianne crouched behind a big one that had bushes growing around it. She peeked through the foliage to see Frank hadn't moved but Will was chasing her. The man momentarily paused and Marianne fired. She hit his right arm making him drop his gun.

Now both men were cursing in pain. Will pushed through it and began searching for his gun hidden in the undergrowth. Frank began firing blind and Marianne took cover again. The gunshots stopped and she dared to look around the tree again. There was movement behind the two men, a lot of it. The gunfire had attracted a group of walkers.

One of them crept up behind Frank and she was surprised he didn't hear it. She watched as it got right next to him and bit his shoulder. Frank screamed as the walker tore away a chunk of his flesh, making Will turn around. Instead of helping Frank, Will began to run away. Marianne aimed again and fired. This time she hit his left knee and he crumpled to the ground. The walkers became incensed and started moving as fast as they could to their next meal.

They surrounded Frank but Will hadn't gone unnoticed.

She estimated there were fourteen of them. Marianne silently walked away before the walkers knew she was there. A smile tugged at the corners of her mouth as she listened to both men scream in agony.

After putting enough distance between her and the gruesome scene, Marianne began to circle around to the gas station. She needed to get back to see if Jimmy was still alive.

Before she got very far she heard gunshots in the direction of the walker feast. Someone else must've crossed paths with the walkers and it sounded like more than one person.

Maybe they were Frank and Will's people. She had to find their camp.

It was a testament to her skills as a tracker that Marianne found it, but it was empty and she'd have to wait. Marianne didn't know what she was going to do.

She intended to assess their threat level but what was her game plan after that? There were limited options here. She could steal their stuff before they came back. Their truck looked to only be a few years old and it was filled with supplies, but then she'd have to count on them leaving the keys behind. Was it worth the risk?

Marianne sat there thinking too long and started to hear people talking and walking through the woods towards the camp.

She waited patiently as two men and a teenage boy came into view.

"Can't believe Frank and Will got caught like that," the teenager said.

"We need to pack up and get outta here," the man wearing a plaid shirt said.

"What for?" The teenager asked. "We killed 'em all."

"There could be more," plaid shirt said. "What about you, Greg?"

"There could be more where we end up goin'." Greg shrugged. "We'll stay here for now. Move on tomorrow like we planned."

They were leaving tomorrow and could end up going the same direction she did. Marianne wasn't willing to take that risk. She knew what she had to do.

It was scary how easy it was. She shot Greg in the head first since he was still holding a rifle. Before the other two had time to process what had happened she shot plaid shirt in the head too. The teenage boy looked around terrified and held up his hands.

"Don't shoot. Please."

Marianne lowered her gun. He was only a couple of years older than Jimmy but Jimmy's age hadn't stopped Frank from putting two bullets in him.

"You can have everything. Just please don't kill me." Randall had pleaded for his life too. Rick couldn't go through with it because Carl had walked in but she wasn't Rick and there was no one watching her now. Marianne pulled the trigger.

* * *

 **A/N: Poor Jimmy. In earlier versions of my story he wasn't supposed to make it off the farm but something didn't feel right about the chapter and I realized that it was because he survived. I had plans of keeping him around long enough to make it to the prison but the same thing happened. However much I wanted to see his character grow and to even write an awkward reunion between Jimmy and Beth it just wasn't meant to be.**

 **Also, I think some of you are probably anxious for Marianne's reunion with Daryl and the group. It's going to happen and she won't be spending the entire winter on her own.**

 **Chapter 18 will be posted sometime this week.**

 **Any thoughts? Reactions? I'd love to hear them!**


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N: Thank you for the follows and the favorites and for continuing to read. Many thanks to Hongo En for all the reviews.**

Disclaimer: I do not own the Walking Dead.

* * *

 **Chapter Eighteen**

Marianne drove to the gas station as fast as she could with her newly acquired truck. She wouldn't abandon Jimmy.

The tires screeched as she hit the brakes, coming to a sudden stop that made her body jerk forward. She jumped out of the truck and spotted a big blood stain on the ground where Jimmy should be. He was gone but there were no drag marks. It was as if he had simply stood up and walked away.

"Jimmy?" She walked to the still wet blood stain and scanned the concrete. Drops of blood led away from it. They were small but they were there. She began to follow the trail and it led her to the back of the gas station.

Marianne turned the corner and there he was, standing with his back to her. His shoulders were slouched and his head hung down. Marianne's heart began to pound. He couldn't be…

"Jimmy?" His head turned first and then the rest of this body followed. Jimmy's eyes weren't his eyes anymore. With a snarl he awkwardly lurched towards her, almost tripping over his own feet. Marianne took a step back. Without having to think about it she drew her gun and fired.

Marianne stared at her hands like they belonged to someone else and then at Jimmy splayed out on the ground. It shouldn't be like this.

She walked to his crumpled form and turned him onto his back. She carefully searched for a bite or a scratch but there were none. Daryl had mentioned the same thing about Randall.

A snapped neck. Two gunshot wounds. It didn't matter how you died. _We all come back._

This revelation was too much. She needed to get out of there. Marianne grabbed her bow and their bags Frank and Will had left behind. She threw everything in the back seat before taking off in the direction she and Jimmy had been walking in only an hour before.

Marianne pushed the gas pedal down. Going up to 65, 70, 75, and past 80. She flew by a few roads she could've taken but the map and her plan were completely out of her mind. She didn't know where she was.

Jimmy shouldn't be dead. He shouldn't have been murdered in front of a gas station the middle of nowhere by a psycho asshole like in a cheap horror movie. She had failed to protect him and she ran away like a coward without burying him. At the very least he deserved that but it was too late. She couldn't waste the gas to go back. Never go back. Always look forward.

However, that was exactly what the group had done. They didn't go back for her and Jimmy and now Jimmy was dead. It could've been so different. Never say never.

Marianne wanted to keep driving until she ran out of gas but she started slowing down when she saw something might be blocking the entire road ahead. One of the last things she needed was to wreck the truck.

She came to a full stop and stared. In front of her, too close for her liking, was a giant herd of walkers making their way down the road in a mindless parade. At least they all had their backs to her. Marianne slowly reversed the truck, wanting to get more distance between her and them before she turned around.

The sight sobered her enough to look at the map and figure out where she was. She penciled an 'X' where she saw the herd and drew an arrow pointing in the direction they were going. She did the same thing two more times for the other herds she and Jimmy had avoided but neither had looked as big as this latest one.

A drop of blood appeared on the map and all of a sudden the pain hit her full force. She had forgotten about the cut and up until then, it had only been a dull ache in the back of her mind.

"Son of a bitch," she said, cursing more at Will, may he rot in hell, than at the sharp, throbbing sting.

Marianne didn't bother to examine her cheek in the mirror. Instead, she put the map away and drove to the nearest town. The ride was unremarkable and that was the problem. Jimmy wasn't there to talk her ear off about Beth or the dogs he had when he was younger or to sheepishly tell her that he had started thinking about becoming a veterinarian like Hershel. He had hopes and dreams from life before walkers that he had still clung to. Where had her hopes and dreams gone?

Marianne reached a small neighborhood on the outskirts of the town. Afternoon was turning into evening and instead of checking out the rest of the town she holed up in one of the houses. She felt like she'd been up for days and that their happy morning was a lifetime ago.

Instead of immediately nestling into the warmth of a bed, she dragged herself around the house to secure it. She blocked all entrances with a piece of heavy furniture. There was no one to watch her back now.

After she felt she had done all she could to keep out walkers and humans alike, Marianne went into the upstairs bathroom with her new first aid kit. A vainer person would've grimaced at her reflection.

Almost half of her face and part of her neck were caked in dry blood. She used a damp washcloth to wipe it away. Some of the blood was stubborn and she rubbed hard enough to leave behind irritated, red skin but the closer she got to the cut the more careful she was. Marianne gingerly patted right underneath it, trying to keep it from bleeding again.

She closely examined the cut and it was a tossup whether or not it needed stitches but regardless she wouldn't attempt any since she'd only make it worse. What she could say with absolute certainty was that it would leave a scar.

* * *

She didn't sleep the whole night through. Marianne kept waking up disoriented and ready to fight. At one point she woke up sitting in bed with her Ruger aimed at the door and her finger on the trigger. The safety was off and who knew how many walkers she would've drawn to her location if she had fired.

That morning she grabbed breakfast, a granola bar and a tiny box of raisins, and crawled back into bed to eat. She didn't feel like getting ready for the day and sticking to her usual morning routine. What was the point? She had all the time in the world until she was murdered or the walkers got her. Old age definitely wouldn't kill her.

A couple hours later she found herself dressed and ready to kill. Marianne had bandaged her cheek the best she could and tied a bandana over part of her face as an extra precaution against blood splatter when she killed walkers in close quarters.

She couldn't be one hundred percent sure but she believed that walker blood or saliva or both transferred into open wounds would cause the infection that killed you. The virus or whatever it was behaved strangely. From Randall and Jimmy's death she guessed that people were already carriers but then why hadn't her cut become infected if the unknown agent was already in her blood? What was the difference between her blood and walker blood? Did the virus or whatever it was fundamentally change when living in a walker host?

These questions and more raced through her mind as she walked through the neighborhood in the direction of the town but the closer she got to the main part of town the more walkers she had to kill. She was retrieving arrows from a cluster of four walkers when she decided the risk was too great so she headed back to the house. If she bothered scouting the town she'd have to use the truck.

Marianne turned onto her street and immediately noticed something was different. There was a new car she didn't recognize parked in a driveway six houses down from hers. Marianne took cover, scanning the area carefully for any movement. When she found none she trained her eyes on the house where the beige Honda was parked. She looked at the windows waiting for a sign of life but after a few minutes of nothing Marianne decided to go into the house.

She carefully made her way towards it and glanced in the car when she reached the driveway. The entire back seat was full of stuff which meant only two people could fit in there. Good. She could easily handle two.

The front door was unlocked and she eased it open. Marianne listened for people before she fully stepped into the house but all was quiet. She shut the front door because, no matter how slim the chance was, she didn't need a walker wandering in.

The house had two stories and with her bow ready Marianne swept through the first floor. Nobody was there so she went up the stairs and paused at the top.

There was blood on the hallway carpet and it made a trail between one of the closed doors and the only open one. Marianne silently walked towards the open door. With her bow raised, she looked into the room.

A woman was leaning on the bathroom counter with her eyes closed. There was blood all over it and in the sink. On her neck was a bite mark that was still bleeding. The woman opened her eyes and looked up. She saw Marianne in the mirror.

"I'm going to die, aren't I?"

Marianne gave the woman a terse nod but didn't lower her bow.

"Are you going to shoot me with that thing?"

"Not yet." This made the woman laugh.

"I'm Julia."

"You alone?"

"It's just me and you."

"I'm gonna search you for weapons. Keep your hands on the counter."

Marianne patted Julia down and checked her shoes but didn't find anything. She stood back up and kept her bow relaxed.

"Better safe than sorry, right?" Julia gave her a weak smile.

"You got a fever yet?"

"No."

"It'll come. Best get you to bed."

Marianne was right. Julia began burning up only a few minutes after she had settled into bed, propped up by pillows.

"This really sucks." Julia's hands shook as she took a sip of water.

"It's only gonna get worse." Marianne took the glass of water and put it back onto the nightstand before Julia could spill it.

"Your bedside manner needs a little work but I appreciate your honesty."

"You don't have time for lies. Do you want me to do it now or when you're dead?" Julia looked surprised and a little alarmed at the question. The woman glanced at Marianne's bow.

"I want to live as long as I can. You only get one life. Is that silly?"

"Don't know." Marianne began to pace, conflicted on whether or not she should leave. She'd done more than enough for this stranger.

"You never told me your name. I don't know who to thank."

"Marianne."

Julia smiled. "That's a nice name."

"I guess." Marianne walked to one of the windows and parted the blinds to look outside. The street was still deserted.

"I rushed in here and left my things in the car. There's a backpack in the front seat. Could you get it for me? The doors should be unlocked."

Marianne let the blinds close with a snap. She turned to Julia and stared at the woman. She had short black hair and a dusting of freckles across her cheeks. There was an edge about her that you could only get from being out there on your own which meant she could be dangerous.

"Fine." Marianne strode out of the room and made quick time retrieving the backpack. She returned to the bedroom and dumped everything out of the bag onto the floor. She searched the backpack and found a pocketknife, which she took. Satisfied that there weren't any weapons stashed in it, Marianne stuffed everything back into the bag and handed it to Julia.

"You're a paranoid one."

"Cautious." Marianne watched in silence as Julia sorted through her belongings. She set aside a notebook, a bottle of water, and a photo before zipping up the backpack. Julia picked up the photo with a shaky hand and looked at it. Marianne could make out two women and a little girl. One of the women looked like it was Julia but with longer hair.

"Can you do me one more favor? My—I came here to be with my niece and her mom but I was too late." Julia looked up at her. "My niece is in the next room. She's still…I know it's a lot to ask."

Thoughts of Sophia surfaced. She didn't want to see another child like that. "I'll do it."

"Thank you," Julia called out as Marianne walked down the hall.

Marianne stared at the blood smeared on the closed door. She opened it and cautiously stepped into a girl's room. There was a dead walker that used to be a woman on the ground at the foot of a white bed, a knife sticking out of its head.

What caught her attention was the walker girl tucked into bed so tightly all it could do was wriggle around. When it saw Marianne it lifted its head off of the pillow, snapped its teeth at her, and began thrashing wildly under the covers.

Ready for this to be over, Marianne strode towards the bed and stabbed the girl's head. The childish snarling stopped. She pulled the knife out and wiped the blood off with a pink blanket.

"You hesitated," Marianne said as soon as she returned to Julia. "You loved them so you froze."

"It was a shock. I spent months trying to get here and all I found was death."

"How far away?"

"I came here from Toronto. I was with people but we parted ways in Virginia. They found a good place to stay. After that I was alone."

"You're lucky you didn't run into anyone." Marianne thought about Will and Frank. She felt a new wave of anger rise up inside of her.

"I know. You worry so much about the dead you forget the living can be just as dangerous."

"I never forget."

"You don't look like a person who does." Julia pointed to her bandaged cheek."What happened? If you don't mind my asking."

"Had a run in with a man who liked knives."

"Is he dead?"

"Yeah."

"Good."

There was another silence. Marianne was content looking out the window again and Julia was writing in her notebook.

"I try to write in here every day," Julia said without prompting, "but it was hard to do out on the road."

"Why bother?"

"I used to ask myself that all the time. I guess it makes me feel less alone."

Marianne supposed that was a good enough reason as any but she still didn't understand it. What was worth recording in this hellhole of a world? She was about to ask but Julia spoke before she could.

"Do you know how long it takes?" Marianne was confused by the question until she realized Julia was asking when she was going to die.

"I knew a man who'd been bit and I don't think he lasted more than a day."

"So I could have hours left."

Marianne nodded. "I can read to ya."

"What?"

"To distract you from the pain." Marianne had noticed that Julia was now sweating profusely and kept shifting around like she couldn't get comfortable.

"You'd really do that for me?" Julia sounded really grateful and Marianne didn't know what to think about that so she thought about what kind of book she should read.

She wanted to choose something short that Julia would live through so she would know how it ended. Personally, she didn't like not knowing how things ended. Marianne remembered spotting a suitable book but she'd have to go into the girl's room.

"Be right back." Marianne zoomed in and out of the girl's bedroom, keeping her eyes glued to a yellow book.

"How does 'Nancy Drew and the Witch Tree Symbol' sound to you?"

"Sounds good. I don't think I've read that one before."

"Me neither. When I was eight I got banned from checking out books at the local library after I returned one of them covered in mud."

"That seems a little harsh." Julia pushed the comforter off of herself.

"There may've been a little blood mixed in."

"Blood?"

"My brother took me camping and we did some huntin'. Taught me how to skin and gut a rabbit." Marianne pulled an armchair next to the bed.

"You killed Thumper?"

"Who?"

"You know, the bunny from Bambi."

Marianne shook her head. "Never seen it."

"You've never seen Bambi? What, did you live under a rock when you were a kid?"

"Somethin' like that." Marianne looked down at the book in her hands and began picking at the frayed corner of the front cover.

Julia must have noticed her discomfort. "Can you show me the pictures too?"

"Sure."

Marianne began reading and only stopped when Julia made comments. At one point she turned the book around to show Julia one of the pictures but the woman's eyes were closed. Every few pages Marianne checked to see if she was alive.

She finished the book in a few hours and Julia had made it to the end but it looked like she was close to her own.

"That was nice. Thank you." Julia could barely speak above a whisper.

"It was nothin'."

"No, it was something." Julia opened her eyes and gave her a meaningful look that made Marianne suddenly find the landscape painting on the far wall very interesting.

"You should rest."

"Okay." Julia nodded and closed her eyes again. "It was nice to meet you Marianne. I'm glad I did."

It didn't take long after that for Julia to die. Marianne watched the life drain out of the woman and knew down to the second when she was gone.

She stared at Julia before her eyes wandered to the notebook. Marianne opened it to the next blank page and uncapped the pen.

 _She did not die alone and afraid. I didn't know her long but I think she was a good person._

Marianne read what she wrote several times and almost ripped the page out, thinking it was stupid. No one would ever read this. It was pointless and why should she care about some stranger's journal?

In the end, she signed her name instead.

She set the notebook aside. The time had come to fulfill her promise. Marianne pulled out her knife and made sure the other woman would never come back.

Marianne stepped away from the bed. All the air rushed out of her lungs and she couldn't catch her breath. It was as if stabbing Julia had broken open a dam inside of her. She threw the bloody knife across the room and backed up against a wall. She slid down it, fighting against the hot tears that ran down her face but Marianne lost the battle.

Sobbing shook her entire body and all she could feel anymore was an overwhelming ache in her chest. She furiously wiped her tears away but forgot about her cut so now there was fresh blood on her hands.

Marianne was a scared little girl again who needed her big brother to make everything all right. She leaned her elbows on her bent knees and pressed the bottom of the palm of her hands into her eyes until they ached. She was alone, truly alone. No one in the world knew she was alive.

She cried for Jimmy. She cried for Julia. She cried for herself.

* * *

Marianne struggled to wake up. She was lying on her back on the bedroom floor pressed up against the wall. Her head was groggy and her cheek ached. The room was beginning to smell like death.

When she left the house she could tell night would be over in a couple of hours. She sleepily walked back to her house but was still on the alert for walkers. It'd be a stupid and pointless way to die.

She didn't bother washing her blood off of her and opted to burrow under the thick blankets of the queen sized bed in the downstairs bedroom. The coolness of the sheets made a shiver go down her back but her trapped body heat warmed everything up in no time.

When she woke up again it was early afternoon. She had slept too long so instead of feeling refreshed she still felt like crap. A groan escaped her as she rolled out of bed. She was starving and dying of thirst and the flaking dry blood was making her skin itch.

After taking care of herself, Marianne decided the first task of the day was to scavenge for supplies in Julia's car. The woman didn't need her things anymore and sentimentality had no place when you were surviving.

There was food and a first aid kit. Most of the rest of the useful items she already had and didn't need doubles of but there was a small tent Marianne took since she hadn't bothered to pack any of the men's tents when she had rushed to get back to Jimmy. The best find was the large containers of water in the trunk. Marianne had plenty of her own so she decided a bath was in order. There was even enough to wash her hair.

For the rest of the day she searched houses. More walkers showed up in the streets she had cleared yesterday. She couldn't be sure how many of them infested the town that could potentially migrate into the neighborhood so she'd only risk one more night there before taking off at dawn.

It was in the evening while there was still enough light outside to see when she spread the map out on the bed, careful to make sure her damp hair didn't get it wet. She was wearing a sweatshirt and had pulled a knit blanket over her shoulders. There were two layers of socks on her feet. The temperature was dropping and she was getting too skinny. The cold bath hadn't helped but she believed it was worth it.

Smoothing out the map one last time Marianne finally took a good look at it but her eyes began to lose focus as she stared at the map. It became smudges of color with black veins. She bet walkers had black veins that their sludge of black blood stagnated inside of. Did the heart still pump and did it turn black too?

Had Jimmy been a walker long enough for his blood to start turning black? She closed her eyes to escape her thoughts only to see Jimmy bleeding out on the ground. He must have been in so much pain and so afraid.

Marianne slammed her hand on her knee and her eyes flew open. She still had a mission: find Daryl and find the group. She couldn't afford to fall apart.

She focused back on the map and traced her options with the pencil eraser. Screw Rick. She didn't want to think like him anymore. Marianne was going to go where she wanted and no more rushing off to the next destination after one day. It was exhausting and now that she was alone she wasn't going to drive herself crazy.

* * *

Siphoning gas was a chore she'd be more than happy to hand over to someone else when she rejoined the group. T-Dog, Daryl, and Shane were usually the ones that did it and she didn't know how they managed to walk around afterwards looking like they hadn't tasted gasoline. It could linger on the tongue for hours.

A sudden thought made her heart skip a beat. She couldn't remember if he had but she hoped Daryl wouldn't do something as stupid as smoke a cigarette anytime soon after. That was asking for a fiery death and she was glad she'd never picked up the habit.

The steady stream of gas turned into a dribble and Marianne pulled the hose out. She tested the weight of the gas container. One more car couldn't hurt. She walked to the next one in the small pileup and began the process again.

Four days had passed since Jimmy's death. If it wasn't for the steady undercurrent of rage threatening to overtake her at a moment's notice Marianne would've been numb inside. She was better off alone, at least for the moment. People meant talking and talking about what happened was something she didn't want to do, would probably never want to do.

Finished siphoning gas and running on a full tank, Marianne continued her journey. She was traveling southeast for the moment but next week she might go north again. She didn't know. Her new strategy was to drive until a high density of walkers in the area made her change directions.

According the truck's clock it was a quarter past five when she came upon a strip mall. There was room for five businesses but there were only two, a food mart and a hair salon. It was a good place as any to stop for the night and it beat having to sleep in the truck like last night.

Marianne went into the hair salon first. Inside, half of the ceiling tiles were missing and it looked like they were undergoing some renovations or repairs. She found some snacks in the back. At the last second she also took shampoo, a comb, and scissors.

While the hair salon had been unlocked, the food mart doors were chained. Marianne took the bolt cutters from the tool box she was glad to find when she had made an inventory of her supplies the other day.

After she cut open the lock Marianne put the bolt cutters back in the toolbox. They were too useful to be careless with.

She opened the door but stayed at the entrance to survey the building. The dirty windows didn't let in a lot of sunlight but just enough to see the place without having to squint. The food mart was bigger than expected and the shelves were tall. She'd need more than a truck to take all of the food with her. This would be a good place to mark on the map in case she was in the area again.

The store was walker free so Marianne went to work. She had to be strategic about what she took. Space was becoming an issue and the heavier the truck was the more gas it consumed.

She methodically made her way through the store from right to left. The last aisle on the left didn't contain food. It included household supplies, office supplies, and even had a small toy section. Marianne was drawn to what was trying to be the hardware section. There were some cheap tools, duct tape, light bulbs, batteries, a wide selection of superglue, and on the bottom shelf, almost hidden away, were spray paint cans. She picked one up. Marianne had an idea.

At the food mart's entrance she wrote 'MD was here' and under that '17th day.' She had been obsessively keeping track and it had been seventeen days since the farm fell. If her group came across it they'd know when she'd been there. She hoped they were counting the days too. They should be for Lori's pregnancy but she couldn't be sure.

Staring at her handiwork, Marianne thought long and hard if she should point them in the right direction but she couldn't risk it. What if someone unfriendly with nothing better to do decided to follow her trail?

* * *

"Seventeenth day? What does that mean?" Glenn asked.

"Seventeen days since we left the farm," Daryl said, breaking his lengthy silence and making everyone look at him. "Marianne wrote this."

"How long has it been? Has anyone been keeping track?" Rick looked around at the group. Most of them had left the cars and gathered outside when Glenn had pointed out the strange message.

"It's been more than two weeks, maybe three," Hershel said.

"So she could've been here only days ago." Excitement was in Maggie's voice.

"Or yesterday," T-Dog added. "How far can she get?"

"Depends, we don't know if she has a car," Rick said.

Daryl ran his hand through his hair. "It won't matter if we go in the wrong direction."

Hershel sighed. "Well, I don't think she's in the direction we've come from. That leaves us one choice."

* * *

 **A/N: Hmm, so I'm not completely satisfied with how this chapter turned out and I'm not sure why. I've edited it down to the last second and I think I've done all I can for it aside from taking another week to mess around with it but I did say I'd post it this week.**

 **I don't have a timeline for when chapter 19 will come out. I've got a whopping three sentences written for it and I think I'll take a two day break from writing to clear my head. If the chapter isn't up by next Saturday I'll post an update of my progress on my profile so I won't be disappearing again.**


	19. Chapter 19

**A/N: Thank you the follows and the favorites and for continuing to read.**

 **Three thank yous to Hongo En, specialsmiley1315, and Guest for reviewing. I'm always excited to see what you have to say.**

* * *

 **Chapter Nineteen**

Marianne woke in a cold sweat. Was it the same dream again? She tried to remember.

She stood in a forest. Everything was still. Even the trees held their breaths. She blinked and a deer appeared in the distance. She had a clear shot so she drew her bow but the arrow broke and the pieces fell to the ground. She grabbed another but this one was broken too. And so was the one after that and the one after that. There were no more arrows left. The deer was gone. She looked for it and the trees started to disappear. Night fell and everything was black except for the stars. One by one they flickered and blinked out of existence until there was only one left. It flickered too but then the dream was over.

Marianne sat up in bed rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. The memory of the dream slipped through her fingers until all she was left with was an empty feeling that gutted her. She wouldn't be eating breakfast again.

Despite the respite from the blazing Georgia sun it gave, Marianne had always hated winter. She had never thrived in the cold so she really didn't want to leave the warmth of the sleeping bag and shivered as she did even though she was already wearing her jacket.

There were only embers left but she coaxed the fire back to life and sat in its warmth as she fully woke up. She looked at the forest around her, planning on what she would do for the day.

Marianne had found a camping ground that she decided to stay at for a couple of days. It was peaceful and there weren't any walkers around yet but that didn't mean she let her guard down.

She didn't always have the chance to hunt when she stayed in towns so she would definitely be doing that today. Before moving on she wanted to eat as much meat as possible to stave off the inevitable weight loss and to conserve her non perishable food supply. With no one else around it could potentially last her most of the winter.

Marianne grabbed her bow and the backpack she had gotten into the habit of taking with her when she hunted. She double checked she was carrying her knives and that her gun was where it always was. Most of her knives had been left behind with Will but she had lucked out when she found a mini arsenal in the truck's pile of supplies. There was enough to keep five people well armed. Leave it to the scum of the Earth to be so prepared to kill.

Marianne headed south of the camp to an area she hadn't explored. She slowly walked through the woods, keeping an eye out for tracks and any movement in the trees that wasn't the wind. Hunting was as natural to her as breathing and the only problem with it is that it gave her time to think, unlike most of the other chores she did to keep busy.

It had been twenty seven days since the farm fell and two whole weeks since Jimmy was murdered. Two whole weeks since she had massacred those men. She'd already forgotten what they looked like and sometimes all she could remember about Jimmy was his walker face. It wasn't the Jimmy she wanted to picture.

It surprised her when no nightmares of that day had come but for days after tears would sneak up on her and she'd have to stop what she was doing to wipe them away.

She was getting used to being alone and to the heartache that accompanied it. She'd adapt to survive like she'd done since she was a girl. Pain and sorrow were old news. The only new thing was that she didn't have her brother to turn to.

Marianne wondered what Daryl was doing right that very moment. Was he hunting like she was? Maybe in the very same woods? She shook her head. It wouldn't do to get her hopes up.

* * *

Daryl had been drowning in guilt since they found her message. Self loathing had a firm place inside of him and mixed in was a happiness he hadn't felt in years. Daryl was almost overwhelmed by this tangled mess of emotions and he was having a hard time thinking straight. The only thing that kept him functioning was the idea that Marianne was out there somewhere looking for them and that somewhere could be close.

He knew he shouldn't be mad at Lori and T-Dog as much as he was. They were the ones that said Marianne was dead and he had believed them when he didn't have to.

 _"I didn't know, man, that she survived. Her and Jimmy were makin' a run for it and walkers swarmed them right next to the car. I saw her head and then she was just gone. Must be a damn miracle to get out of that alive."_

Daryl could at least grudgingly accept T-Dog's apology but he was outright pissed at Rick. In the end it was Rick who convinced him not to go back, that Marianne was gone and there was nothing they could do for her.

One of the only things that kept Daryl from beating him to a pulp was the extra time he spent away from the group. Technically he was hunting, which he was still doing, but the extra time wasn't spent that way. He'd climb a tree and sit there thinking about nothing or at least he tried to.

That was where he was now. Up in a tree picking at some loose bark and watching two birds huddled together in the next tree over completely ignoring him.

There was a dead walker with an arrow sticking out of its head a few yards away. He really should be getting back to the house. The squirrels wouldn't be ready in time for dinner if he didn't leave now but he didn't care. Let them wait. They could use the practice.

* * *

Marianne waited. The squirrel's tail twitched. That's all she could see of it at the moment. All it needed to do was move around the tree again, so she waited, and that was exactly what the squirrel did. She released her arrow. The squirrel had no chance of living through the winter. It was a perfect head shot, just the way she liked it. Instead of falling to the ground her dinner was pinned to the tree. Marianne would have to climb to retrieve it but she didn't mind, not when she'd be eating well that night.

She took her backpack off and set it on the ground, placing her bow next to it. The tree was an easy climb with plenty of branches to choose from and Marianne gracefully hoisted herself onto a low hanging one. She reached the squirrel in no time and pulled the arrow out of the tree. She dropped it, along with the squirrel, to the ground and started climbing down.

Marianne deftly maneuvered herself to a lower branch. There was a loud crack and before she could grab onto anything she was falling.

Pain ripped through her abdomen. It was worse than the cut on her cheek had ever been. She didn't know how long she lay there trying to catch her breath and feeling her blood leave her body. She wasn't going to die. This was no big deal. She just needed to stand up and she'd be fine, but standing proved harder than she anticipated. It felt like someone was stabbing her over and over, taking vindictive pleasure in it. Marianne had to lean against the tree she'd fallen from. She looked up and shuddered when she saw her blood smeared on the bark.

She couldn't bend over to grab her things and had to squat instead. Her body protested at every movement. She could feel the bruises forming on her back and knew she'd be sore all over tomorrow but she needed to push through it to get back to camp as soon as possible.

The journey was walker free. What should have been a fifteen minute walk turned into half an hour. Her body was screaming at her to stop moving but she needed to clean and bandage her wound so she grabbed her medical supplies and water before going into her tent.

She shrugged her jacket off and cut her shirt to take it off too. Her injury looked as bad as it felt and it covered the right side of her stomach, reaching just under her chest down to her hip. Her skin was shredded and so was her shirt. It looked like she'd been mauled by a wild animal or a walker. She was glad it hadn't been a walker but a wild animal was another story. She couldn't exactly kill a tree in revenge and eat it.

There was debris embedded in her and she began picking it out. It was a painful and slow process but she knew the worst was yet to come. She scooted out of the tent with a huge bottle of hydrogen peroxide and a canteen of water in hand. Her body flinched as she continued to clean the wound with water.

Marianne held her breath as she poured the hydrogen peroxide onto her. She gave a loud hiss. Black speckles danced at the edge of her vision and she quickly set the bottle on the ground so she wouldn't spill it before lying down. The blackness receded but she continued to lie there, trying to calm her ragged breath.

She struggled to sit up and went back into the tent. It was time for the bandages. Marianne didn't have nearly enough ointment to cover her wound so she went without it for now. She had Hershel's antibiotics which would hopefully be enough to prevent any infection.

Stitches would be useless. There wasn't enough skin left to stitch together so she gingerly wrapped herself, using as little bandages as possible. She only had enough to change them two more times and would need to figure something out soon.

The pain hadn't taken away her hunger. In fact, she was starving and she was determined to have roasted squirrel for dinner with a side of green beans. It took her longer to do everything and she had to pause every once in awhile to wait for a wave of intense pain to recede.

After eating it was time for bed even though the sun hadn't begun to set. Marianne put the fire out. Its warmth wasn't worth the attention it might attract during the night.

Despite the trying day she'd had Marianne couldn't fall asleep. She stayed as still as possible and stubbornly kept her eyes closed but she finally opened them and found that it was now dark.

A twig snapped in the distance. All thoughts of sleep were pushed from her mind as she focused her complete attention on listening for more noises. Another twig snapped and this time it was closer. Soon she could hear the faint rustling of someone or something moving through the woods and as the seconds passed it was getting louder.

There were more snapping twigs and then she heard it, the collective moaning of a group of walkers and they were headed directly towards her.

Marianne didn't move a muscle as she waited for the first one to walk past her tent. Its shadow loomed over her, making it seem bigger than it actually was. More and more filtered out of the woods and soon she was surrounded. It was hard to estimate how many there were but the exact number didn't matter. There were too many.

Her hand crept towards the knife she kept at her side and she took hold of it, prepared to fight if she had to but hoping it wouldn't come to that.

It was the highway all over again but this time she had more disadvantages. She was alone, injured, and tired. If the walkers caught on to her presence the only hope for her survival was to make it to the truck.

A walker brushed against her tent and Marianne stopped breathing. Her whole body tensed and the grip on her knife tightened. She didn't think they could smell her through her tent and sleeping bag but there were so many unknowns about walkers she couldn't be sure. What she was really worried about was her bloody shirt crumpled right outside her tent. Would they smell it and investigate?

Two hours must have passed as she waited for the walkers to shuffle through and away from her camp but it wasn't until morning that she dared to crawl out of her tent and take a look around. There were footprints everywhere. Marianne estimated that there easily could have been over a hundred walkers.

She began packing up as fast as she could move. Marianne was beyond exhausted and resigned to the fact that a second wind wouldn't be coming. Driving in her state wasn't the greatest idea but she needed to find a safer place to stay while she healed. She didn't know how long it would take until she was in good enough shape to travel and deal with the risks that went along with it.

* * *

Marianne grunted as she pulled the gate closed. She'd found a tiny, one street neighborhood surrounded by a tall fence. There were twelve houses on one side of the curvy street and sixteen on the other. Most of them were in various stages of being built. Some were only frames with a roof and a few were only partially bricked. About halfway down the street was a finished house that someone had moved into.

She parked the truck in the garage and went into the house. There were boxes everywhere. Whoever had briefly lived there hadn't finished unpacking but all the furniture seemed to be around.

Marianne chose an upstairs bedroom to settle into and carried everything she could possibly need to the room. She planned on staying for awhile. Despite wanting to explore the place a little more she got into bed after securing the house. Sleep came easier this time.

When she woke up it was evening. Her injury burned and the bandages were making her itch. She stiffly got out of bed to grab some new bandages and set to work. Marianne found that taking them off was at least twice as worse as putting them on. Some of the loose skin had stuck to them and she had to carefully peel it off to set it back in place.

After that ordeal and before the light went away, Marianne took a better look around the house. She had an idea about her bandage shortage and it would require a lot of sheets. It didn't take her long to find them. She opened a hallway closet near the upstairs bathroom to find it full of bedding and towels.

She grabbed a stack of sheets. They were nicer than any she'd owned in her entire life but she had no problem cutting them into strips. As she cut them she wondered if she needed to sterilize them, which would require a fire and she didn't think she was up to collecting firewood.

When she began rolling up the makeshift bandages she decided they were as clean as they were going to get for now but when she ran out again she'd have to go through with cleaning them and hopefully she would be well enough by then.

For the next six days Marianne fell into a routine that largely included staying in bed and not moving. It drove her a little crazy but she found a few boxes filled with books that helped her pass the time.

She was sitting up in bed, leaning against a mound of pillows, reading a book when she heard something downstairs. It sounded like glass breaking. Marianne set the book down and looked at the closed door. She got out of bed, shivering after leaving the cocoon of blankets she'd been wrapped up in, and walked to the door to crack it open.

A door closed. There was someone in the house.

* * *

 **A/N: Hurray! I finished in time! My mini break was nice and much needed. My brain thanks me for it. I think I'll try sticking to a once a week update for now but when I write faster I'll post things more often.**

 **There's a list of things I want to do before they reach the prison and it's a little unorganized at the moment. I need to hammer out a final timeline and the order of certain events so character development makes sense. Marianne and the group will definitely not be having an uneventful winter. Feel free to make suggestions about what you want to see, like more interactions between certain people or certain types of scenes. I can't make any promises but I'll see what I can do.**


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N: Thank you to** **x NikiSt x for the review and to APeaceOfPie4Everybody011 for the suggestion.**

* * *

 **Chapter Twenty**

Marianne silently closed the bedroom door and rushed to arm herself. She already had one knife on her but the rest were on the nightstand along with her Ruger. She left her bow on top of the dresser since the gun would be more intimidating.

Whoever it was, they were taking their sweet time getting to the second floor. The bedroom Marianne was in was the nearest room to the stairs and it would probably be the first one checked.

The wait gave her time to form a plan. She didn't hear any talking so maybe there was only one person and maybe this person was alone like she was. That was the best case scenario. The worst was this person had a group waiting outside. Either way she had the element of surprise and fast reflexes.

The person was nearly silent but a creak on the stairs gave them away. When they reached the hallway their footsteps were muffled by the carpet. Marianne closed her eyes for a few seconds to steel herself and opened them in time to see the door knob turning.

The door inched open.

"Stop right there," she said when the door was almost open enough for the person to see her. Her voice sounded rough because she hadn't spoken aloud in days.

"Marianne?" Time slowed. She knew that voice. It couldn't be possible. It couldn't be this easy after she had looked so hard. A man stepped into view, completely ignoring her order and opened the door all the way.

The man lowered his gun first and she followed. They took a few uncertain steps towards each other and then Marianne rushed to him but instead of greeting him warmly she punched Rick as hard as she could.

He stumbled back into the door, making it slam against the wall with a loud bang. Rick didn't have enough time to recover before Marianne punched him again. Then she lunged at him but he side stepped and went behind her. She turned around to face him again.

"Marianne, it's me." He looked at her as if she had gone completely insane.

Marianne went in for another hit but Rick blocked it so she kicked his feet out from under him and he crashed to the floor. She was on top of him in a flash getting in another punch before Rick rolled them over so he was on top of her. With great difficulty he pinned her arms down but this didn't deter her.

She kneed him hard enough for him to let go of her. Marianne scrambled out from underneath him and stood up. Without realizing it she had pulled out a knife. Maybe she was a little insane.

Rick stood up. Both of them were breathing hard. He looked around for his gun that he had dropped but he didn't see it. He held his hands up in a placating manner but Rick didn't speak. It looked like he didn't know exactly what to say so they stood there staring at each other.

"What the hell? Marianne?" Rick and Marianne looked at the doorway. Glenn was standing there looking thoroughly confused with his gun aimed at the wall. It wavered a little towards Marianne when he saw the knife but he ended up not pointing it at her.

The fight went out of Marianne and she dropped her knife. Pain was radiating from her stomach. If she stayed standing a second longer she'd pass out so Marianne quickly lay down on the floor. Rick was soon standing over her, looking more concerned than angry. She smirked at his bleeding nose. Although she was bleeding too, right through her bandages and shirt. Rick spotted the blood and immediately squatted next to her.

"Jesus Marianne. What the hell happened?"

She closed her eyes.

"What's wrong with her?" She heard Glenn ask.

She opened her eyes. "Accident. It must've opened again." Marianne was positive that she had ripped open the scabs that had formed over part of her injury and the delicate new layer of skin that had begun to grow. She had ruined almost a whole week's worth of healing.

"We need to get you back to Hershel."

"Daryl?" She asked. Rick and Glenn exchanged a look.

"He's not doing too well," Rick said after a short pause.

"But he's not hurt or anything," Glenn added. He seemed to be taking the whole situation in stride. Despite the worry on his face there was a glint of joy in his eyes.

When she was sure she wouldn't pass out she let Glenn help her up.

"How are we getting back? We don't have a car. We walked here," Glenn said, correctly assuming that Marianne wasn't in any shape to walk anywhere except to bed.

"I have a truck in the garage."

Rick nodded. "We'll use that." He left to check the truck after Marianne told him where the keys were. This left her alone with Glenn who helped her lean against the foot of the bed and then started packing without her having to ask.

"How's Daryl?" She wasn't satisfied with Rick's earlier brief answer.

"He doesn't talk that much. Like almost never. And he's gone a lot. Some of us were worried he'd leave." Marianne wasn't surprised to hear this. She knew him leaving her behind would take a toll on Daryl. She almost felt glad that he was suffering for what he did. Almost.

Glenn set her backpack next to her. He must have sensed that she didn't want to hold a conversation because for once he didn't continue to talk.

Rick soon came back. "Let's head out."

"My stuff."

"We'll come back for it," Rick said and she reluctantly nodded. Glenn grabbed her backpack, her bow, and, at the last second, a bag with some of the medical supplies.

Despite the extremely short distance Marianne was grateful when they reached the truck. Her stomach was on fire and she needed to get off of her feet. The two men shifted things around so she could stretch out on the back seat.

Glenn opened the garage door as Rick got in the driver's seat. He turned the key in the ignition.

"Don't wreck my truck," she said curtly. It wasn't a joke exactly. She didn't really know what it was. Marianne guessed she was inclined to be irritated in general about whatever Rick did, or maybe she was more attached to this truck than she realized. Maybe it was both.

"Wouldn't dream of it," Rick said after a few seconds delay, probably as confused about her statement as she was.

Glenn, oblivious to the short exchange, cheerfully got into the truck and they were off.

"We'll be there in less than five minutes," Rick said. Marianne's breath hitched. They were so close and she never would have known if they had decided the one street neighborhood wasn't worth checking out.

"How long?" Marianne asked.

Glenn turned around to look at her. "This is our fourth day," he answered. "We were supposed to leave yesterday. Lucky we didn't. I can't believe we found you." He smiled at her and turned back around.

Marianne stared at a scuff mark on the ceiling and wondered what had made it. "Who'd we lose?"

"Andrea, Dale, Patricia, Jimmy, and... Shane," Rick said. They didn't know about Jimmy. Should she tell them? She didn't want to.

They stopped at the entrance to a gated community and Glenn left the truck to open the gate. When he was done Rick pulled up next to him and Glenn got back into the truck. Rick drove down the main street, took a right turn, and promptly parked in front of a house. They weren't too far into the neighborhood, which was smart. They could make a quick getaway without a great risk of getting trapped if they needed to.

Rick and Glenn got out of the truck. Marianne strained to sit up and when she was upright she got a partial view of the front yard. T-Dog, Hershel, and Maggie were standing on the porch, all of them armed. Lori, Carol, and Beth were standing in the front doorway just inside the house. The person she most wanted to see wasn't in sight.

She watched Rick and Glenn talk to the others. Both of them gestured to the truck which made people look over at it. Marianne was frozen in place. She couldn't bring herself to open the door. This was what she had been looking forward to so why couldn't she leave the truck?

She squeezed her eyes shut, frustrated with herself. She heard her door open and she opened her eyes to see Glenn standing there.

"Do you need help?"

She shook her head. "I got it."

Marianne slid out of the truck. The door hid her from everyone. She hesitated before shutting it and exposing herself. Shock rippled through the group as it registered with each of them that she was standing before them. Obviously Rick and Glenn hadn't told them she was there.

Lori put a hand to her chest. Maggie looked like she was about to cry out of happiness. Carol had tears in her eyes and T-Dog had his mouth hanging open. She stood there uncomfortable as they gaped at her but then she saw wide smiles. Those were quickly replaced by concerned looks as everyone took in the state of her.

Marianne's attention wavered away from them as she scanned the area for Daryl and then, walking around the side of the house was her brother. He glanced at what all the commotion was and stopped in his tracks. His eyes widened and he stared at her like he couldn't believe what he was seeing.

Daryl didn't stand there for long. He rushed towards her with the biggest grin on his face but still looked incredulous that she was really there.

She wrapped her arms around him and he wrapped his around her. Tears were running down her face but she was laughing. She ignored the pain and held him tight. It didn't look like either of them wanted to let go.

"I'm so mad at you," Marianne said but she couldn't stop smiling.

They pulled apart and it took no time at all for Daryl to take in the fresh blood on her that the initial shock of seeing her had blinded him to. He frowned and Marianne looked down at her shirt. The pain wouldn't be ignored any longer. She wiped the tears off her face which brought Daryl's attention to her cheek and his frown deepened.

"You need Hershel. Come on. Can ya walk?" Daryl was all business. They'd have time to talk later and there was plenty to talk about.

Marianne nodded, holding back a grimace. "I can manage."

Daryl eyed her and shook his head. "Nah." He picked her up like she didn't weigh anything.

"Daryl, I can walk." She would've squirmed out of his arms but her stomach hurt too much to move around like that.

"I know you can. Doesn't mean you have'ta."

Daryl carried her to the house and when he reached the porch the group parted to let him through. When he entered the people outside followed after him. In the living room, which looked well lived in, Marianne saw Carl looking at her wide eyed before he smiled too. She returned it.

"We'll set her up in the bedroom," Hershel said. Daryl walked through the living room and into a hallway in the back of the house. Hershel moved ahead of them to open a door. Daryl went into the room first and Hershel followed.

A king sized bed took up two thirds of the room. There was a long dresser with an attached mirror to the side of it. Two nightstands stood on either side of the bed and a cushioned bench at the end of it.

Daryl placed her on the bed and Marianne sat against the headboard, a fat pillow cushioned her back. Beth walked in with a bag of medical supplies. Hershel took it and thanked her before she left the room, leaving the door cracked open.

He set the bag on the bed at Marianne's feet and looked through it as she unbuttoned her shirt. Daryl helped her sit up so she could unwrap the makeshift bandages.

"Sheets?" Hershel asked. "That's resourceful."

"Yeah. I ran out of real bandages real fast."

Daryl was frowning again once he saw her injury. It looked really bad and she was frowning at it too. Hershel had a serious but calm look on his face while he examined it. Daryl stood a few feet behind Hershel with his arms crossed.

"How'd it happen?" Hershel asked.

"I was up in a tree getting a squirrel I pinned to it. One of the branches broke and I slid down. The bark tore me up."

"That would do it," Hershel said. "The bleeding's mostly stopped. We'll have to keep an eye out for infection."

"I have antibiotics from the farm I've been taking."

Hershel nodded. "That's fortunate."

Her face betrayed her pain while Hershel cleaned her wound and put new bandages on her.

"We have pain medication you should take," Hershel said.

"No, I don't wanna be foggy." She hadn't even considered taking any when she was alone. The idea was unthinkable.

"I won't let anything happen to you," Daryl said but she looked at him skeptically. It wasn't that she didn't trust him; it was that Marianne didn't trust the world. For a few seconds she could see the telltale signs of hurt on his face. He hid it fast and any other person would've missed it. Marianne bit her lip.

"Okay. I'll take it. But only one pill."

Hershel found the right pill bottle, opened it and took one out. Marianne took the pill from him and grabbed her water bottle from the nightstand. With some misgivings, she put the pill in her mouth and swallowed it.

With nothing else for him to do Hershel left the room, leaving the two siblings alone. They rarely had awkward silences but this was one of those times. Marianne fiddled with the end of her messy braid. She was about to speak when it looked like Daryl came up with an idea.

"Hold on." He left the room and came back with a hairbrush. Marianne smiled.

"I think the last time you did this I was ten."

Daryl shrugged with one shoulder. He helped her off the bed so she could sit on the floor and lean against the side of it. He sat on the bed behind her while she unbraided her hair. When she was finished Daryl began brushing.

"Do you still remember how?"

"I better. It was a pain in the ass to learn."

Marianne had never asked how he had learned to French braid. She'd always assumed it was Laura, the single mother down the street with three daughters older than Marianne. She'd married and moved away shortly after Marianne had entered middle school. She was the only neighbor that had shown an inkling of concern over her, but not enough to call for help when Marianne had needed it.

Daryl carefully began to brush out the many knots in her hair. She felt herself slowly relax. It was a strange feeling. Although, Marianne suspected the pain medication probably had something to do with that.

She felt a light tug and Daryl let out a short laugh.

"What?"

"Found a twig. What'd you do? Fall out of a tree or somethin'?"

"Ha. Ha."

There was a pause. "I wish I could've been there."

"Me too." _I wish you wouldn't have left me._

The brush stopped and rested gently against the back of her head. "I don't think I can forgive myself."

"I forgive you."

"Why?" She couldn't see his face but his voice sounded pained.

"Because you're my brother. Because I love you and you're human and humans make mistakes." _But I would've gone back for you._ "This world's unforgiving enough."

He began brushing again but it didn't take long for him to speak again. "That cut on your cheek. It ain't from a tree."

"It ain't."

"It looks like it's—"

"I don't want to talk about it," she said in a rush. Daryl put the brush down and began separating strands of hair to start braiding.

"I'll be here when ya do."

She concentrated on the gentle pull on her hair so she wouldn't cry. "I know."

Daryl didn't ask her anymore questions. He talked about what the group had been doing since the farm. He told her about Rick's 'this isn't a democracy' speech, about Shane's plot to kill Rick, and how Rick killed Shane instead.

He wasn't one to gossip or really care at all about people's personal lives but he was observant and he didn't want Marianne to feel like she had missed anything. He told her how Maggie and Glenn were closer than ever, how Lori was upset with Rick and that the married couple didn't spend too much time around each other and how Carl was taking it hard.

"We're all infected. Rick told us. He knew since the CDC."

"I already know," she said dully, not really interested in explaining in detail how she made this discovery.

"How?"

"I found out the hard way." Marianne didn't have to see him to know that he wanted to ask her exactly what the hard way was but he didn't.

She could feel that he was almost done and the pain medication was kicking in enough to start making her sleepy.

"T-Dog said you disappeared in a group of walkers. How'd you get out?" She had wondered when he would ask about that. Everyone would want to know.

"I went under the car and waited 'til they were gone."

"I should've known it'd take more than that to kill ya. You're stubborn as a mule." Daryl finished the braid.

"I wonder who I got that from." Both of them smirked. He helped her stand and she got into bed. Her eyelids were heavy and it took a considerable will to keep them open. She didn't want to go to sleep yet, irrationally afraid that when she woke up she'd be back in the other house all alone. The pain medication was really getting to her head.

"You need to sleep. You can barely keep your eyes open."

"I don't want to. I just got back."

"And we'll still be here when ya wake up."

Marianne sighed and settled further into bed, trying to find a comfortable position. She didn't usually sleep on her back and she didn't really know where to put her arms. The last thing she saw before she closed her eyes was Daryl looking worried but sleep took her before she had time to wonder why.

* * *

Daryl made sure Marianne was asleep before leaving the bedroom. He debated whether to keep the door open but decided to close it so any noise they made wouldn't wake her up. She was a light sleeper like he was.

"How is she?" Maggie asked as soon as he entered the living room. Everyone stopped what they were doing so they could hear his response.

"Sleepin'."

"No, how is she?"

"As good as she can be." His answer didn't seem to satisfy Maggie but she didn't press any further.

"Okay, now that Daryl's here we can start," Rick announced. It was time for a group meeting to discuss what they were going to do. Although Daryl wouldn't call it a true discussion. A few people would give their opinions but Rick ultimately made the decisions—decisions that were final.

Everyone gave their attention to Rick who would talk first. "Be ready to move on tomorrow. We'll be leavin' early morning so pack what you don't need for the night."

Daryl couldn't believe what he was hearing. Marianne was hurt and it wasn't minor. It was time to speak up.

"No, we ain't movin' until Hershel says Marianne's okay to."

"Daryl, we've already been here four days," Rick said.

"And we can be here four more or however long it takes for her to heal up."

"Daryl—"

"We only searched half the town. Hell, there's a pharmacy we haven't got to and that neighborhood we haven't scavenged. There ain't a herd around. I scouted the area and I'll do it again. Unless one shows up we ain't goin'." Daryl stared Rick down.

"Fine, we'll leave the day after tomorrow," Rick said.

"Then you can leave without me and Marianne. Just tell us what direction yer goin' and we'll catch up."

For a second it looked like Rick was seriously considering this option but Carol spoke up. "We're not leaving you two behind. I think we should stay." Everyone except Rick nodded in agreement.

"We can't abandon them. It's a miracle we found Marianne," Maggie said, crossing her arms.

"The group shouldn't split up," Lori added.

"It'll be at least a week before she can safely move," Hershel said.

Daryl was surprised at the unanimous support. It looked like they were close to mutiny if Rick decided they leave tomorrow.

Rick was deep in thought as he stared at all of them. "Fine, we'll stay but we're scouting the area every day." He looked pointedly at Daryl who nodded.

The meeting was over and Daryl went outside. It was his turn for watch.

* * *

Marianne was groggy from the drug induced sleep she'd just woken up from. It was dark and she could see light seeping into the room around the edges of the closed door. There were sounds of eating, which was something she was ready to do.

As if on cue the door opened to reveal Carol holding a plate of food and a small battery run lantern. "You're up." Carol smiled and walked into the room.

"Barely." Marianne struggled to sit up. Carol put the plate and the lantern down on the nightstand and helped her.

"I thought you might by hungry."

"You were right." Carol handed her the plate. From the look of it Marianne guessed that her ration was bigger than the others. "This is too much."

Carol shook her head. "You're healing. Your body needs it."

"I can't eat all of this."

"You can and you will."

"Give some to Lori." She held the plate up for Carol to take but the other woman didn't move.

"Lori gets enough. Now eat. We need you well." Marianne looked away from Carol. That's right. She had forgotten. She and Daryl were useful. The group liked them around because they fulfilled needs and she wasn't very useful at the moment.

"That's not what I meant." Marianne shrugged, still not looking at Carol. "You're worth more to us than what you can do. I wish you could see that."

Marianne picked up the fork and began pushing the mushy canned carrots around. She felt Carol move closer and looked up. She shied away but Carol wasn't deterred from kissing the top of her head.

"Eat." Carol didn't stay to see if Marianne obeyed. She stopped poking at the chopped carrots and stabbed some with her fork. She ate without savoring her meal. Eating quickly had become a virtue. You never knew when you'd be interrupted by something trying to kill you.

When she was finished she set the empty plate on the nightstand. Marianne felt sleep trying to claim her again even though the pain medication had worn off. Her stomach was full for once and she was lying on a real bed. A tranquilizer couldn't have done a better job at getting her eyes to close.

The door opened and so did her eyes. The silhouette in the doorway turned into Rick. A deeply rooted anger flared inside of her. It burned the lethargy away and her body tensed. Rick's face was in shadows so she couldn't quite make out what the look on his face was but his stance was relaxed but a little cautious. She wondered what kind of talk he wanted to have.

Her face settled into a glare. Rick hesitated before closing the door. She waited for him to speak first.

"How are you doing?" His usual self confidence was absent from his voice. She shrugged. "I want to talk."

"Too bad. I don't. You need to go."

"I understand why you're mad at me." She gave a short unamused laugh.

"Turn around, open the door, and leave."

He ignored her demand. "I don't blame you for attacking me."

Marianne scoffed. "Are you deaf? I said leave."

"Please, just give me a minute.

"Get out."

"Marianne—"

"Get out!" She sounded savage and Rick jerked backwards as if she had slapped him. There would be no reasoning with her tonight.

He nodded. "Okay. Okay."

She watched him leave the room. When he was gone she took a deep, shuddering breath that hurt her stomach. A few angry tears ran down her face that she didn't bother to wipe away.

* * *

 **A/N: It finally happened! I'm dying to know what you think about the reunion. Although, it's not completely over yet. She still has the rest of the group to see.**


	21. Chapter 21

**A/N: Thank you for the follows and the favorites. And thank you to specialsmiley1315 for the review.**

* * *

 **Chapter Twenty-One**

Marianne woke before sunlight stretched across the sky. All was quiet and the only other person that must be awake was the one on watch. Marianne wondered who it was. She ignored the pain, which had lessened a tiny degree, the best she could. She put on her jacket and left the room, making her way down the hallway and silently entering the living room.

It was slightly warmer in there than the bedroom and she guessed it had to do with the accumulation of everyone's body heat. She tiptoed around the sleeping bodies trying her best not to disturb anybody. T-Dog was the only one missing.

She found him on the porch. He turned when the door opened and looked surprised to see her. Marianne walked over to stand beside him. The morning air was chilled. She hoped they wouldn't have a hard winter.

"What are you doing up?" T-Dog asked in a hushed voice.

"I'm an early riser. Plus I slept half of yesterday and all night."

"How are you feeling? Hershel told us how you got hurt."

"I've been better. Wish I could've chopped that tree down and used it for firewood."

T-Dog chuckled. "Remind me not to get on your bad side."

"You'd have'ta do somethin' pretty terrible for that to happen."

T-Dog's face fell and she was confused about his reaction. "I think I might've," he said. "It was partly my fault, why we left you behind. I saw you go down and I told everyone there was no way you survived. I'm sorry. I don't think I can say that enough."

Marianne's heart sunk a little and she looked away from him but she didn't have it in her to be angry at him. "It looked pretty bad on my end so I can only imagine what it looked like to you."

"So you're not mad at me?"

She shook her head. "I'm not mad." Her mind strayed for a moment. This revelation had reminded her that she and Daryl hadn't had the big talk yet—about why he didn't go back.

"How'd you get out of it?" T-Dog asked.

"Went under the car and waited."

"Wow, I never thought of that." T-Dog raised his eyebrows at her, looking impressed.

"Can you tell the others? I don't feel like explainin' it over and over."

"Yeah, it's the least I can do."

They stood in companionable silence for a couple of minutes. Marianne thought about how much she wanted to hunt while the sky began to lighten.

"Daryl stood up to Rick yesterday," T-Dog said. "Did he tell you about Rick's big speech?"

"Yeah."

"Well no one's gone up against Rick like that since."

"What was it about?" She asked.

"You. Rick wanted us to leave this morning but Daryl didn't want you movin' around." He eyed her. "I don't think he'll like you out of bed."

"Tough. He can deal with it. It's not like I'm runnin' a marathon."

"And if Rick sees you he might change his mind about leavin'."

"Then he can deal with it too."

"You're not too happy with him, are you?"

Before Marianne could answer the front door opened and Glenn stepped outside with a rifle slung over his shoulder.

"Morning," Glenn said.

"Morning," T-Dog and Marianne said at the same time.

"I guess it's time to go in," T-Dog. "Man, I wish we still had coffee."

"You and me both," Glenn said, punctuating the statement with a yawn.

"There's no coffee? Anywhere?" Marianne asked.

"Oh, there is. But we found out the smell attracts walkers so we stopped makin' it."

"Huh. Good thing I'm not a big coffee drinker."

"How do you survive?" Glenn asked. "You always wake up so early."

"By sheer force of will," Marianne teased. She thought this was a good sign. Things might get back to normal sooner than she thought they would.

She followed T-Dog into the house and looked around the living room. Everyone except Carl was either out of bed or stirring. The boy was still passed out and it looked like he was in a restless sleep.

Carol already had a strong fire going and Beth was folding blankets from some makeshift beds to clear up floor space. Lori was sitting up, still on the sofa which was clearly where she had slept. Marianne could see her dark under eyes from across the room.

Rick, Daryl, and Hershel were gone. Maggie stood up and stretched. She was the first one to notice Marianne.

"Hey, how are you?" Maggie asked, making Beth, Carol, and Lori look to see who she was talking to.

"Fine."

"It's good to see you up," Lori said.

Daryl walked into the living room, coming from the back hallway. "What're you doin' out of bed?" He asked without preamble.

"Got some fresh air."

"You shouldn't be up," he said and the stabbing pain in her side supported this but she wouldn't tell him that.

"Too late," she said. Daryl gave her a grumpy look which she shrugged at.

"I'm gonna get some more firewood," he said. "You best be in bed by the time I get back."

"Yes sir," Marianne said which made a few people have to suppress their smiles. Daryl scoffed and left the room, heading for the back door.

Marianne sat on the couch that had already been vacated by whoever had slept there. Maggie sat next to her and began brushing her bed head away. She was using the same hairbrush Daryl had yesterday.

"I'm so happy you're back. We all missed you," Maggie said Marianne looked down at her lap.

"Yeah, it's good to be here."

A conversation began among T-Dog, Lori, Maggie, and Carol. It was mostly about what they were going to do for the day. Their attempts to include Marianne failed. She didn't know how to act around everyone and fidgeted in her seat. Being around more than two people overwhelmed her.

Listening and watching how easy it was for them to be around each other made her realize she didn't know how she fit into the group anymore. Had it always been this hard? Her memory was failing her and any positive effects of talking with T-Dog had quickly worn off. This wasn't going to be easy. Leaving the bedroom had been a mistake.

She stood up too fast and swayed. She knew she wasn't at peak physical condition with her injury and having been on a restricted diet for a little over a month but this was ridiculous and it was making her angry.

Marianne swept aside the others' concern and retreated to the bedroom. The tension she hadn't noticed left her body and she sighed in relief. _How am I gonna do this every day?_

* * *

Daryl came into the room with what smelled like two bowls of oatmeal.

"Apple cinnamon?"

"Don't get used to it. All that's left is plain."

"I knew it was too good to last."

He handed her a bowl and sat next to her on the bed with his own. He stretched his legs out.

"Your boots have blood on 'em."

"Dry blood," he said as he kicked them off. His socks weren't much better off.

"You need clean socks," she said before eating her first spoonful. Next to leftover scraps of squirrel and hard as a rock granola bars for breakfast, this was heaven.

"What for?"

"They're filthy."

"So?"

"Clean socks'll feel better."

"I don't care what they feel like," he said after swallowing some oatmeal and she didn't doubt it. Over the years the only way his vest was cleaned was her sneaking it into the washing machine. She'd put it back right where she found it and he never mentioned anything about it to her.

They were scraping their bowls clean when Marianne decided now was as good a time as any to have the talk she was dreading.

She set her bowl aside and began picking at some fuzz on the quilt they were sitting on.

"Daryl." He turned to look at her. "I need to know." She looked him directly in the eyes. "I need to know why you didn't go back."

He dropped his spoon in his bowl and it clattered. His face went blank. Marianne resisted the urge to look away.

"Please." Her voice faltered. "I forgive you, I really do but I don't understand."

A look appeared on his face that she'd never seen before and couldn't recognize. "I don't know if I have an answer. I've been askin' myself the same thing every day."

"That's not good enough."

Daryl starting biting his thumb but stopped so he could speak."T-Dog and Lori said they saw you die. And Rick said it was no use goin' back. It wasn't safe on the highway so he wanted to leave."

"Rick said. Rick wanted. I don't give a damn what he says or wants."

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry."

She finally looked away from him, unable to bear the sorrow on his face. "I know you are."

"I'd do anything to take it back. To change it."

"But it can't be." She wished they could have a do over like he did, that it could all be erased. She had more new scars than the one on her face. "I waited for you and you didn't come. I- I went through hell." She was crying now and there was no use hiding it or trying to stop.

Marianne turned her head to look at him again. His face was wet. "I wanna help," he said, wiping away his tears.

"I just want to be alone right now."

Daryl looked like he wanted to stay but nodded and left the room.

She forced herself to stop crying. Marianne didn't know how long she had been staring at the ceiling when she heard a light knock. She didn't respond but the door opened anyways. It was Carol.

The older woman stepped into the room looking concerned and Marianne felt her patience to deal with people slip away.

"Daryl took off." Marianne didn't like that Daryl had left but, if she was in any shape to, she would've gone off to be alone too. Then she wouldn't have Carol talking to her right now. "He looked upset. What happened?"

"None of your business."

Carol pressed her lips into a thin line. "He's been beating himself up."

"If Daryl's the only thing you want to talk about then you can save your breath. Go worry somewhere else." Carol opened her mouth to speak again but Marianne gave her a warning look and Carol changed her mind. The older woman left the room and Marianne closed her eyes in an attempt to stave off an incoming headache.

Not even an hour had passed when there was another knock on the door. Marianne gave a frustrated sigh. What did she have to do around here to be left alone?

"Are you decent?" Hershel asked through the closed door. The question was too absurd to not be a joke considering he'd already seen her nearly half naked.

"Come in," she said. It didn't go unnoticed that so far he'd been the only one to ask her permission to enter the bedroom.

Hershel walked in carrying one of their bags with their medical supplies.

"How is it?" He asked.

"It hurts."

"Let me check on it and change the bandages."

Marianne lifted her shirt so Hershel could cut the bandages off. Only a little bit of blood had seeped through all the layers. He carefully peeled them off and her stomach flinched as her wound was exposed to the air.

There wasn't a lot of light since they kept the blinds and curtains closed so Hershel used a small flashlight to get a good look at her. "Not much of a change but there's signs it's healing. No signs of infection." He began putting on new bandages. "You need to keep your movement limited for now. You don't want another setback like yesterday."

"So Rick told you what I did."

"Yes he did," he said in a neutral voice, not giving her the disapproving look she was expecting. "If you had hit him any harder you would've broken his nose." Hershel finished with the bandages. "I'll give you another antibiotic pill. I'd also recommend you take the pain medication. At least half a pill."

She scrunched her nose. "Why?"

"You'll be more comfortable and rest better. A stressed body heals slower." Marianne couldn't argue with that and took the medication less reluctantly than last time.

* * *

It was a little past one in the afternoon and Marianne was well into her task of sharpening her knives when there was a timid knock on the door.

"Marianne? It's Beth."

"It's open."

Marianne set aside her knife and whetstone as Beth entered. She was carrying a plate. "I brought you lunch." It looked more like a good sized snack than a lunch.

"Y'all have lunch?" Marianne asked, surprised.

"Sometimes." This sounded suspicious.

"And today?"

"Only you and Lori." Beth handed her the plate and she took it.

Marianne stared at the package of peanut butter crackers and canned pears. "I won't eat the crackers unless you eat the pears."

"I can't do that."

"I know you're hungry. I am."

"I don't know…"

"I won't tell if you won't. Come on." Marianne took the crackers off the plate, leaving the pears, and held it up for Beth. It looked like she thought long and hard before deciding to take the plate.

Beth smiled at her in thanks and sat on the bench with her legs crossed, facing towards Marianne. "Carl has a fever. He's stuck in bed."

"Is it bad?" Marianne asked as she opened the package of crackers.

"No, Daddy says it's just a cold."

"Let's hope he gets better soon."

Beth nodded. She had a serious look on her face. "Maggie and Glenn left to find cold medicine and tissues. I think extra blankets too."

"Does it look like anyone else has caught it yet?"

"No, but Daddy says it's only a matter of time." Marianne frowned. This was exactly what they didn't need. They couldn't afford to have the group incapacitated. Colds used to be an inconvenience but now it could mean your death.

A sudden weariness overtook Marianne. She wanted a break from this world, from this life.

She encouraged Beth to talk so she didn't have to. She'd throw in a nod every once in awhile. They finished their meager meal quickly and Beth thanked her again for the pears before leaving the room with the plate.

* * *

Marianne had a book on her lap open at the same page for over an hour. She gave up the pretense that she was trying to read and closed it, forgetting to mark her place.

There was a knock on the door and then Beth walked in with a stack of sheets and two pairs of scissors.

"Daddy thought you might want somethin' useful to do."

She motioned for Beth to sit on the other side of the bed which she did, setting the sheets between them.

Marianne grabbed one of the scissors. "Does Hershel have any specifications?"

"No, he said the way you did them was fine. He said you cut really straight."

"I had a lot of time to kill."

"I can imagine." Beth grabbed one of the sheets and unfolded it. Marianne did the same and both of them started cutting. "When we're done we're gonna put them in boiling water. Carol already took down the shower curtains in one of the bathrooms and cleaned the shower rod so we can hang them there to dry."

"Sounds like y'all've been busy." _While I'm in here doin' absolutely nothing._

"We like helpin'."

"I guess I'm not used to it."

They each finished cutting their first strip. "How did you stand it? Being alone." Beth asked. Marianne was surprised at the boldness of her question, so surprised she answered more truthfully than she liked.

"I almost didn't." Jimmy's pale face flashed through her mind. His blood soaked shirt. His walker eyes. Frank and Will being torn apart. She remembered how she had smiled at their screams. Three men crumpling to the ground where they stood. What would the group think about her if they knew? What would they do? She took a shaky breath.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you."

"Don't worry about it." Marianne could sense that Beth had another question and she was almost sure it concerned Jimmy. "I made sure he didn't stay a walker. He's dead for good." She didn't know if that was the answer Beth was looking for. It was the best Marianne could do.

She watched Beth for her reaction and the girl's face turned somber. They cut the sheets in silence.

* * *

Someone's hand was on her shoulder gently shaking it. Marianne opened her eyes but her vision was blurred like she was underwater. She couldn't identify the person standing over her.

"Marianne," a woman whispered.

"Julia?" This didn't make any sense. Julia was dead. She had driven a knife through her head.

"They're coming."

"Who?"

"You have to hide."

Marianne sat up. There was no pain. "From who?" She didn't get an answer. She blinked and Julia was gone. Her vision cleared and she saw she was in a different bedroom, the one where Julia had died.

She got out of bed and lifted her shirt. Her skin was unmarked. Marianne's forehead wrinkled at the absence of her injury.

"I'm dreaming," she said to the empty room. She automatically looked around for her weapons. There was a gun on the dresser but it wasn't her Ruger. She didn't even finish taking one step towards the dresser when the door banged open. She had forgotten that she was supposed to hide.

Five men filed into the room and surrounded her blocking any path of escape.

She shook her head. "You're all dead. I—"

"You killed us," Frank said. "You're a murderer."

Will leered at her. "A coldblooded bitch."

They closed in on her and she took a step back, her legs bumped into the nightstand. There was nowhere for her to go.

Suddenly the gun from the dresser was in Frank's hand. He aimed it at her head and pulled the trigger. Marianne saw red, the rich crimson of blood.

Someone's hand was on her shoulder shaking it. She opened her eyes. Her vision was blurry as if tears had pooled there. She couldn't identify the person kneeling next to her.

"Marianne," a man whispered.

"Rick?" The air was cold and she could feel grass underneath her. This didn't make any sense. She blinked rapidly and her vision cleared. The stars were bright behind Rick's head. His face was a collection of shadows.

"Are you okay? What are you doin' out here?"

Marianne sat up. There was pain. "What?" She slowly blinked, trying to orient herself and push away her confusion.

"Are you okay? Do you sleepwalk?"

"Sleepwalk? Not since… high school. After…" She rubbed her eyes instead of finishing her sentence.

"Let me help you up." Rick held out his hand but Marianne ignored it. The anger she held for him was flooding back and growing stronger with each breath.

"I don't need your help," she snapped and stood up by herself on unsteady legs. With the aid of the moonlight she looked at her surroundings. She hadn't been in the backyard yet but that's where she guessed she was.

The back door was ajar and an icy finger ran down her spine. She bet she was the one that had left it open and made the people inside vulnerable.

She tore her gaze away from the house and looked at Rick, who stood next to her too close for comfort. His arms were crossed and he was scrutinizing her.

" _Are you okay?"_ He wasn't asking for an answer, he was demanding one.

Her right hand clenched into a fist. "Peachy keen."

"You need to get back inside. We'll talk about this in the morning."

"There's nothin' to talk about."

"Yes there is. This is a problem and it needs to be addressed."

"Good luck gettin' my cooperation officer."

"You're actin' like a child."

"How's this for childish." She turned her back on him and stormed off into the house.

* * *

 **A/N: My allergies have been crazy bad and leaving me so tired I've been sleeping in most of my free time. I've put this up literally minutes after I finished it so forgive any mistakes.**

 **Any reactions? Thoughts? I'd love to hear from you.**


	22. Chapter 22

**A/N: I'm so, so, so sorry I took so long. I got really stuck, not just on this story but on other stuff I write for fun and just for myself. It sucked not being able to get any work done. I'd sit at my computer staring at the word document, looking at the same few paragraphs I had written. On Wednesday I finally got back into gear and here it is. Thank you so much for sticking around!**

 **Thank you to** **ValeriNeria, Potter's Wheezes, and SeverusSnape'sLove for the reviews! And a thank you for the follows and the favorites.**

Disclaimer: I do not own the Walking Dead.

* * *

 **Chapter Twenty-two**

Rick stood on the front porch, his right hand resting on his Colt and his left running through his hair. His eyes scanned the empty street. An hour had passed since he had found her and he couldn't stop thinking about it.

At first he hadn't known what he was looking at but when he had realized it was a person his mind had blossomed with a number of scenarios, most of them unpleasant. Was it a walker? A stranger? One of their own?

He had cautiously stepped closer to the prone figure and when he had recognized her his stomach had dropped. He had checked for injuries first and had noticed the distressed look on her face. He could only guess that she had been having a nightmare.

Rick sighed. He was torn between two emotions, worry and a fierce annoyance, both directed at Marianne. He couldn't blame her, not really. She had figured out that he was the reason they had abandoned her. How could he have known she had survived? That night was chaotic and there had been too many walkers to count. He had eye witnesses that she and Jimmy had died. All he could think about was getting the rest of them to safety.

No matter how many times he went through the list of things that justified his actions, guilt still gnawed at him. It didn't change the fact that they could've gone back. They could've taken one of the cars and been in and out of the farm without getting trapped.

The front door opening snapped him out of his thoughts. It was Maggie coming to relieve him. He gave her a tired nod which she returned with more energy than he had mustered.

Instead of going straight to bed Rick went to Carl and put a hand on his son's forehead, careful not to wake him. He was still hot to the touch. At least he was sleeping. The cold medicine Maggie and Glenn brought back seemed to be working.

Rick managed to get a few hours sleep and woke up with the indignity of not being able to breathe through his nose. As he sat up and became more alert he noticed his sore throat and small headache. His body ached as he stood up and stretched, looking around the living room.

Glenn would be on watch. Maggie was gone too. Carol and Herschel were stirring. Daryl was already up and dressed, staring out the window. It was darker outside then it usually was.

Rick went to stand next to Daryl, wondering how he'd begin to address Marianne's sleepwalking.

"A storm's comin'," Daryl said without looking at Rick.

"Guess we'll hold off on scouting the area if it rains." Rick's voice sounded raspy and he cleared his throat. Daryl finally looked at him and tilted his head. "I caught Carl's cold," Rick answered Daryl's unspoken question. Both men returned to looking out the window. "Something happened last night we need to talk about," he said in a low voice. "With Marianne."

Daryl's head turned quickly towards Rick. "Is she okay?" Daryl made to turn around and go check on her.

"She's fine, for now." Daryl stopped moving and gave the man beside him a questioning look. "Does she sleepwalk?" Rick asked.

Daryl looked surprised at the question. "A long time ago."

"Well, she's doing it again. I found her on the ground in the backyard last night. She left the back door open." Daryl's gaze moved to the floor, his eyes looked distant. Rick wondered what the man was thinking. "Do you know what causes it?"

Daryl shrugged and looked up at Rick. "Something bad happened to her and she started sleepwalkin'. It only lasted a few months."

Rick nodded slowly. He knew Daryl was one for understating things so 'Something bad' translated into 'Something terrible'. Rick didn't think the fall from the tree was causing this. What else had happened to her out there? "We can't afford for this to go on for a few months. It's a danger to her and the whole group."

"We don't know if she'll do it again."

"True. But if she does we have a real problem. Do you know what stopped it before?"

Daryl nodded but didn't say anything. Rick held back a sigh. "I told her last night we needed to talk about it but I think it's best if you do it instead of me."

"I can do that." Daryl took a quick glance out the window. "Gotta get more firewood before it rains." He left before Rick could get another word in.

* * *

Morning came and went with no sign of Rick. No sign of anybody except Beth, who told her more people were sick. Rick, Lori, and T-Dog. Afternoon arrived and the storm that had been threatening for hours finally arrived. Rain pounded the house, sometimes so hard it sounded like gravel was being thrown at the windows.

There was a knock on the partially open door. She hoped it was Daryl but was disappointed when Hershel appeared. She wanted things to go back to the way they were between them. She knew it would be hard, with his guilt and her feelings of abandonment.

Against her will, she couldn't help but wonder how much she could trust him. With her life, she told herself but there was a tiny seed of doubt planted in her heart, where there were cracks her doubt could take root in. Despite this, in the solitary hours after Daryl had left her she decided she would try her hardest to get things back to normal.

Hershel came into the room and her thoughts dispersed. There was a rumble that shook the house. "I wonder if walkers get confused by thunder," Hershel said as he set his bag down on the bed.

Marianne half smiled and began unbuttoning her shirt. "I guess it could. Maybe lightening too."

"Let's hope they don't get confused our way," Hershel said as he pulled out the rolled up bandages made out of sheets, medical scissors, and what looked to be an antiseptic spray he hadn't had yesterday. He held the bottle up. "Maggie and Glenn found a couple of these yesterday. It's used on minor wounds but we can make an exception."

Hershel cut the last of the real bandages and she almost winced as he peeled them off. He inspected the wound, his face not betraying what he thought about it. After awhile he nodded his head, seemingly satisfied with what he saw. "There's still no sign of infection. Rick told me about what happened last night and it doesn't seem to have caused any damage."

Marianne had another reason to be mad at Rick. She didn't want anyone to know about last night. It was bad enough that he had been the one to find her. "Who else has he told?"

"Only Daryl." Hershel picked up the antiseptic spray. "This might sting."

It did sting and Marianne held her breath until he was done. The fresh bandages were put on and Hershel was about to leave but paused, looking like he wanted to say something. "You've got plenty of people to talk to. People who care. Daryl wasn't the only one who mourned you."

Hershel left Marianne sitting on the bed in shock. Having him tell her people cared about her was different from when Carol had, who Marianne wouldn't put it past to lie to her just to make her feel better. Marianne believed Hershel was a good man and didn't think he would lie about this.

Her chest constricted and she squeezed her eyes shut. She tried taking a deep breath to calm her roiling emotions but she failed. Her breath hitched as her mind turned to all the horrible things that had happened since the farm. Did they care enough about her to look past the murders and her failure to protect Jimmy? She imagined their faces as they found out. No, it wouldn't go well. They would never look at her the same again. Even Daryl would see her differently.

Another knock on the door interrupted her thoughts. Maggie poked her head into the room and smiled. Marianne knew she couldn't smile back so she settled with a small wave. Maggie further opened the door and stepped into the room. She was holding a small pile of books Marianne recognized.

"Thought you might be bored out of your mind," Maggie said as she walked to the bed and sat on the edge. She handed Marianne the books and Marianne set them on her lap. "Yesterday me and Glenn went back to the street you were stayin' on to go through the rest of the houses. I also went into the house you were camped out in. I saw these books next to the bed and thought you might be readin' some of them. I don't think it occurred to Rick or Daryl you might've wanted them when they packed up the rest of your things."

Marianne looked at the books. The one on top was an Agatha Christie book she'd never heard of that she had started to read. She thumbed the pages and looked back up at Maggie. "Thank you. You didn't have to do that."

"Of course I did. It's the least I could after you saved my life," Maggie said. Marianne had almost forgotten about that trip to the pharmacy. It felt like it had happened years ago. "I wanted to thank you about whatever you've said to Beth. She's talkin' more and actually smiled a couple of times."

Marianne furrowed her brow and tried to think about which thing she had said that would've affected Beth but came up with nothing. "I didn't do anything."

"But you did," Maggie said. "I know we didn't talk a whole lot before."

"Except about peaches."

Maggie laughed. "Except about peaches. Anyways, I wanted to tell you that I consider you a friend. I hope you do too."

Marianne bit her lip. She didn't know today would be so emotionally trying and she hadn't even talked to Daryl yet. "Sure," she said lamely.

Maggie left after a few minutes and the only other person she saw was Beth, who brought her dinner. The rain eventually let up but daylight was thinning as night descended. There would be no trips, not even a quick one.

Daryl had been avoiding her all day, which was no small feat when everyone was stuck inside the house. She was about to go to sleep when the door slowly opened and the person she had been waiting all day to see came into the room. He successfully avoided eye contact as he walked towards the end of the bed.

Daryl stopped and awkwardly stood there, looking like he didn't know what to do with himself.

"You can sit down. I don't bite." A ghost of a smile appeared on his face. He walked to the other side of the bed and sat down. He kicked his shoes off before he stretched his legs out. She noticed he had on relatively clean socks.

"How's the pain?"

"Bearable. But it's startin' to itch. I think it's because it's scabbing over again."

There was a pause and Marianne knew what was coming next. "Rick told me what happened."

"I knew he would. He said we needed to talk but I guess he sent you instead."

"I wasn't sent here by anybody. I wanted'ta see how you're doin'."

"You avoided me all day."

"Didn't think you'd want to see me."

"I did and I do. I just needed to be alone yesterday. I was by myself for weeks. I didn't think it'd be so hard to be back with y'all."

"I figured it's been hard and now you're sleepwalkin'."

"I don't want to talk about it."

"You need to."

She shook her head. "I can't."

"It's what stopped it last time."

"I don't think you understand. I _can't_ talk about it. I don't think I can get the words to come out of my mouth. And you'd never look at me the same."

"You don't know that. I still looked at you the same last time."

"You don't know what I did, what happened. It's so much worse."

"If you don't tell me, at least promise me you'll tell someone."

"I promise," Marianne said, even though she wasn't sure that she could keep it.

* * *

The rain continued on and off for two more days. Marianne had finally left the bedroom to sit in the living room. Everyone who was sick had been having lunch the past couple of days and she was making sure the soup didn't burn. She looked around at everyone and could tell they were all anxious. They were waiting for Daryl to come back from his patrol of the area which Rick had said they couldn't put off any longer on account of the rain.

Rick, Lori, and T-Dog showed no signs of getting better and now Maggie and Glenn were sick too. Carl was the only one that seemed to have improved. The group was far from running at peak efficiency. No one other than Daryl was fit to make supply runs but nobody wanted him going by himself. He couldn't even go hunting with the weather and Marianne could tell he was relieved when he could finally leave the house and be alone.

Marianne retreated to the bedroom with a small bowl of soup. She didn't think Daryl would be back for another hour and she was antsy to get away from everyone. Their worry was making her more worried, something she really didn't need at the moment or ever.

Right when she finished her soup, someone appeared in the doorway.

"Hey Carl."

"Mom says I can finally get out of bed. Wanna play Monopoly?" He held up a beat up old box of the game. "It was the only game I could find."

"What, no poker this time?" Marianne teased.

Carl smiled. "We don't have any cards."

"Hmm, we'll have to fix that some time. Come on, let's set the game up. You can be the banker."

"Cool. Beth is playing too."

Marianne had only played Monopoly once before in her life. It was in her high school economics class, when the substitute teacher was too lazy to teach and brought out a stack of the board game. She hadn't been terrible at it but she also hadn't been very good.

Beth soon joined them and money was distributed. Over an hour passed, the rain still coming down, and no one was close to winning.

"Park Place. That's me. Time to pay up," Marianne said.

"Oh man. How much is it?" Carl asked

Beth was closest and looked at the board. "Thirty-five dollars."

"You're lucky Beth owns the Boardwalk or I'd have a house already," Marianne said.

Carl was handing her the money when Hershel walked in, interrupting their game. "It's time for a group meeting."

Rick hadn't called a group meeting for days and Marianne wondered what it was about. The three of them followed Hershel to the living room where everyone else was already gathered, including Daryl, who looked like he had just returned. He was still wet and was dripping water onto the carpet.

Rick nodded when he saw the four of them enter. "Okay, let's get started. Daryl says the area is clear. We're running low on cold medicine and prenatal vitamins so Daryl and I are goin' on a run tomorrow," he said, not sounding at all up to the task.

"You can't go," Lori said, looking a little guilty that she was one of the reasons they needed to venture out.

"You're too sick," Carol added.

"I have to agree. You need to rest Rick. Push yourself and you'll take longer to recover," Hershel said.

"Can't someone else go?" Lori asked.

Rick shook his head, looking exasperated. "There's no one else. Glenn, Maggie, and T-Dog are worse off than I am. Marianne's injured. We can't risk losing Hershel. He needs to be here for the baby."

"I can go," Marianne said, making everyone look at her. She could already see signs of protest in their faces. "I'll drive. Stay in the car in case you need a quick exit. Be the lookout."

"You're not goin'," Daryl said.

"It's out of the question," Rick said.

"No it's not. I'll be sittin' on my ass the whole time." Lori shot Marianne a look and she guessed it was because of her language.

"You could hurt yourself even more," Rick said and Marianne scoffed. "Things can go wrong out there."

"And that's exactly why I'm goin' with y'all. I'm not trusting you with my brother's life. Not the way you are right now."

Rick turned to Daryl. "Convince her she can't go."

"I'm right here. I can hear you."

Daryl looked between Rick and Marianne. "If she's dead set on goin' there's nothin' I can do. If Hershel says she's okay, then let her come."

"Hershel?" Rick asked.

"She's healing fast. As long as she stays in the car, there shouldn't be a problem. She'll be fine."

Rick didn't look happy at all with Hershel's assessment. He shook his head. "I still don't like it."

"Rick, the two of us equals one healthy person. I'm goin' whether you like it or not."

Marianne and Rick stared each other down. It didn't look like either of them would back off but finally Rick did. "You're staying in the car," he said in his cop voice. "We leave after breakfast."

* * *

 **A/N: Chapter 23 will probably be out in a week.**

 **On another note, who else wasn't prepared for the season premiere? My dad refuses to watch it and won't be watching TWD anymore. I hear there's a lot of people like that. I don't think I'll watch that episode again except for when I eventually get to that part in this story.**


	23. Chapter 23

**A/N:** **Thank you for the follows and the favorites and for continuing to read.**

Disclaimer: I do not own the Walking Dead

* * *

 **Chapter Twenty-three**

The rain had stopped early in the morning but a cloud still hung over Marianne and Daryl and a storm over her and Rick. Breakfast was quick and when the trio stepped outside they found the sun peeking out from between white clouds. There was a chill in the air that made Marianne and Rick zip up their jackets while Daryl appeared unaffected in only long sleeves and his vest to keep him warm.

Marianne sat in the driver's seat, Daryl in the front passenger seat, and Rick in the back. Marianne started to drive to the neighborhood's entrance gate. After raised voices between Marianne and Rick on whether turning on the heat would use up gas, as a compromise, the heat was turned on the low setting, which was where Marianne was going to put it anyways.

"I'll get it," Daryl said, leaving the car to open the gate already looking annoyed at Rick and Marianne. She drove out of the neighborhood and Daryl shut the gate behind them before getting back into the car.

"We'll go to the pharmacy first. Take a left up here," Rick said.

"Nah, goin' right is faster," Daryl said.

Marianne turned right, feeling a certain joy at going against Rick's order. For the rest of the short drive, made shorter by Marianne's speeding, it was quiet except for the occasional direction from Daryl. There was one quick stop to kill a lone walker.

"Just in case," Rick had said when he left the car to dispatch the rotting man.

They arrived at the pharmacy located at the end of a short two lane street which also had a diner and a thrift store. She was disappointed at how much smaller it was than what she had pictured. Would it have killed this town to get a big chain store?

She stopped the car in front of the pharmacy and put it into park. They sat in silence as they looked out the windows. "It looks clear," Rick said.

"Should we check the nearby streets and make sure they're clear too?" Marianne asked. It was her usual routine when entering towns and it made her uneasy to break it.

"I think we'll be fine," Rick said. "We've already made a sweep through the area and went through some stores and houses but it was getting dark by the time we reached this street so we headed back."

Daryl must have seen the skepticism on her face. "We should be good," he said.

Marianne nodded but this assurance didn't make her feel any better. "Okay then."

The men were getting out of the car when she remembered something."Hey," she said as they were about to close the car doors. "Don't go out of your way but if you see a deck of cards, take it. They're for Carl."

Rick gave her a strange look before closing his door. She watched the two men walk to the front of the store and knock on the glass door. When nothing came they went to open it but it was locked. She saw them exchange a few words before Rick started hitting the glass with the butt of his rifle. The thump of the rifle hitting the door prompted her to look around to make sure no walkers appeared.

She glanced back at the men when she heard glass breaking. She saw Rick putting his arm into the store to reach the lock. After a few seconds Rick straightened and pulled on the door. This time it opened. Rick and Daryl entered the pharmacy and Marianne settled in for what would hopefully be an uneventful trip. She debated on whether or not to leave the car running and decided not to but left the keys in the ignition.

She vigilantly surveyed both ends of the street. Although, it was hard to see behind her because she couldn't exactly turn her body and had to rely on the mirrors. After about five minutes Marianne knew there was no way she was staying in the car, no matter what Rick or anyone else would say.

She retrieved her bow from the back seat and stood next to the car with the door open so she could quickly slip in if she needed to. It was easier to keep a lookout outside of the car.

Marianne thought about Daryl. To the rest of the group things between brother and sister had gone back to normal but right underneath the surface there was a strain between them. They knew each other so well that a slight change of tone or the shift of a shoulder could speak volumes so it was hard to hide from each other. Hard but not impossible.

She heard barking and looked down the street to her right. A dog rounded the corner, looking like it was running as fast as it could. Not long after, a second dog followed seemingly chasing after the first. This was the one that was barking. It was loud and deep and echoed in the empty street.

The noise was asking for trouble and she wished it would shut up. Her heart sped up minutely and, automatically, she readied her bow. Both dogs ignored her as they ran past and disappeared around another corner.

Marianne kept an arrow ready and alternated between looking at either end of the street. She was looking at the end of the street where the two dogs had come from, with less than half a minute having passed, when she heard the faint scraping of shoes on asphalt. Marianne had just enough time to get back into the car, quietly shut the door, and duck before the first one appeared on the street.

There was no way to alert Daryl and Rick of the walkers without drawing attention to herself. She could only hope that they looked out the window to see for themselves and stayed silent.

As if one of them had deliberately went against her advice, a gunshot pierced through the quiet moaning of the walkers passing by the car.

"Shit."

* * *

Daryl's arms were pinned under a metal shelving unit. Boxes were scattered around him, one of them had hit his face. He could feel blood running down the side of his cheek and into his ear. The large walker that had tipped the shelves over onto Daryl in its eagerness for its first meal was getting ready to bite his shoulder. He tried to pull his arms free but he wouldn't make it in time.

Just when he thought it was too late a bullet went through the side of its head, splattering blood on his face. The dead walker slumped on top of him. Daryl turned his head and saw Rick across the room lowering his rifle.

Rick ran to Daryl. "Are you hurt? Can you move?" He asked as he rolled the dead walker away.

"I'm good," Daryl said while managing to finally free one of his arms.

It took both of them to lift the shelves off of Daryl so he could get out from under them.

"Marianne's gonna wonder what the gunshot was for. I don't think she's stayin' in the car." Daryl said.

They walked out of the back room and into the main part of the store. Daryl was surprised to see Marianne wasn't already there but then he saw the walkers at the door and understood why. He pulled Rick out of sight but by the growing intensity of the growling Daryl guessed that the walkers had already seen them.

Daryl hoped that Marianne was okay and that she had stayed in the car. The question of whether or not she had stayed in the car was answered by honking. He peered at the door and saw walkers starting to leave.

"She's drawin' them away," Daryl said.

Rick looked at the door too. Only half appeared to follow her, leaving one half too many for Daryl's liking.

They watched the glass crack and give in.

* * *

Marianne started the car and began to drive. She honked the horn a few times and walkers began peeling off of the group banging on the pharmacy door and windows but she could tell right away that not all of the walkers had followed her and she cursed, honking the horn a few more times.

When she turned left she stopped the car and waited for the walkers to catch up so they wouldn't lose her. Her mind flashed back to the highway when she had led a group of them away from the farm. Life seemed so much simpler back then.

The walkers appeared and she continued on her way. She was unfamiliar with the layout of the town and could only rely on educated guesses on where each turn would take her. She drove slow enough to try to prevent any of the walkers from breaking off of the group but she had stopped honking her horn, not wanting to draw out anymore that might be hiding who knows where.

Satisfied that they were far enough away from the pharmacy and going in a direction away from the neighborhood they were staying at, Marianne sped up and left the walkers behind.

It took longer to circle back than she thought it would. For a moment she was afraid that she was lost but then she recognized one of the streets and knew exactly where to go.

She turned onto the pharmacy's street and immediately noticed that it was empty. This didn't make her feel any better because she knew this meant that all of the walkers that had stayed behind were now inside the pharmacy with Daryl and Rick.

Marianne parked just out of sight of the windows so if any walkers happened to look out they wouldn't see the car. She grabbed her bow before getting out. She had twelve arrows, six in the quiver attached to her bow and six more stashed in the back of the car. She needed to make them count.

Marianne grabbed the rest of the arrows, which were in their own quiver that she slung across her back, and nocked an arrow before walking to the pharmacy door. The walkers were concentrated in the rear of the pharmacy with their backs to her. Standing there, it looked like there were more walkers than what she had estimated when she saw them from inside the car.

She took a deep breath and not wanting to get caught on the jagged glass of the door, she opened it instead to step inside. Daryl and Rick weren't in sight and the walkers weren't stooped on the floor stuffing themselves so she could only assume that they were safe for now.

She released her arrow and the first walker went down. Seven more followed before their comrades noticed what was happening. The ones closest to her began turning around and were now focused on reaching her.

Marianne gave up shooting any more arrows and made a run for the pharmacy counter. She jumped over it. It was a paltry barrier between her and the walkers but at least it was something.

She set her bow down, grabbed her knife, and stabbed the first walker that was trying to get over the counter. It slid off the counter and onto the floor.

The other walkers ignored it and kept coming. A grey-haired man in a suit and tie was next and then a young woman with part of her face eaten off. They were relentless but so was she.

"Marianne!"

She almost paused at the sound of her name but stabbed another walker instead. While she was pushing it away she quickly looked behind the walkers. Daryl and Rick were there, picking off the ones at the edge of the crowd.

"I'm okay," she called back.

Marianne grabbed the ponytail of a particularly ambitious walker and plunged her blood soaked knife into its head. She had trouble pulling it back out and by the time she did another walker had grabbed her right arm.

It pulled hard and jerked her forward making her abdomen dig into the counter. She let the pain fuel her and she pulled her arm away but by the time she did this another walker grabbed her left wrist. The grip was weak and she easily shook the walker's hand off of her.

Marianne backed away from the counter, needing a second to catch her breath. The walker that had grabbed her arm nose dived off the counter onto the floor in front of her, the first one that had managed to make it over. It took three stomps to its head to kill it.

She counted the rest of the walkers. There were only six, two left for each of them. Marianne swiftly killed the first but when she turned to the second she paused. It used to be a woman, with short black hair and a dusting of freckles across its face. She backed away from the walker that looked so much like Julia. She felt her breakfast trying to come back up.

Daryl came up behind the walker and stabbed his knife into its head. Marianne flinched and Daryl stared at her, his brow furrowed.

The three of them looked at each other and the carnage around them.

Marianne knew that some of the blood on Daryl's face was his own. "You're hurt. What the hell happened?" She asked not only because she really wanted to know, but also because she wanted to distract him from what had just happened.

"Are you okay?" Daryl asked.

"Don't make this about me." She put her hands on her hips. "I asked you a question."

"Just some bruises," Daryl said. After he told her what happened she looked at him skeptically, not quite believing that he was fine.

"We should finish up here," Rick said. He looked exhausted. A sheen of sweat covered his paling skin.

"You look like shit," Marianne said. She guessed all of them didn't look too good covered in blood, but Rick looked like he could keel over any second.

Rick ignored her comment and turned to Daryl. "Do you still have the list?"

Daryl nodded and pulled a crumpled piece of paper out of one of his pockets.

"What did you two manage to get before all hell broke loose?"

Daryl dug into a back pocket and pulled out a deck of cards. Marianne let out a tired laugh. "Here, give me the list. I'll start back here."

Daryl had to step onto the dead walkers to get close enough to Marianne to give her the piece of paper where Hershel had written a list of medications. She looked it over, appreciating that it was in alphabetical order.

When Daryl and Rick were walking away to loot the rest of the store she looked back up at them. "Don't forget the tampons."

"Wouldn't dream of it," Daryl said.

They worked in silence. The large pile of dead walkers seemed to hang heavy over them all. Marianne didn't bother to count them because she didn't want to know how close they had come to being overwhelmed.

When she finished she had three plastic bags worth of pill bottles which she set on the counter along with her bow so she could hop over it.

"So much for not making sure the area was clear," she said as she walked on top of bodies.

"We couldn't have known this would happen," Rick said.

"Uh, yes we could've. You know, if we had taken ten minutes to look around."

"We're not doin' this now," Rick said.

"Then when?"

"Marianne." It was the only thing Daryl had to say to get her to back off. Instead of berating Rick, she started collecting her arrows and pulled them out of heads with more force than was necessary.

While the men went to put their full duffle bags and the medicine in the car Marianne picked up a hand basket and went through the store herself, occasionally grabbing things off of the shelves.

"You ready?" Daryl asked through the broken door.

"Yeah, I'm comin'." Marianne took the basket with her and put it in the trunk.

"What'd you get?" Daryl asked.

"Socks."

"Are you serious?"

Marianne smiled. "Very serious. Now come on, get in the car. I'm sick of this place."

They unanimously agreed they weren't making any other stops and Daryl decided to drive back. Marianne was in the front passenger seat and Rick was lying down on the back seat, giving up any pretense that he was feeling fine.

Marianne unzipped her jacket and lifted her shirt. She was relieved to see that she hadn't bled through her bandages. Hershel hadn't changed them yet so he could take a look to see if any damage was done. She hoped there wouldn't be or she would never hear the end of it and they'd never let her out again until she was healed.

"How's it look?" Daryl asked.

"So far, so good." Marianne lowered her shirt and zipped up her jacket. "No worse for wear."

"We'll see about that."

The ride back to the house felt longer than the ride to the pharmacy. When they finally arrived at the neighborhood, Marianne took care of the gate and they were soon backing up into the house's driveway.

"I think he's asleep," Marianne said.

"Wake him up."

"Rick." Nothing. "Rick, wake up." Still nothing. "Rick!" He sat up so fast it looked like it disoriented him, much to Marianne's amusement. "We're back."

Rick nodded and rubbed his face. There were still specks of blood on it.

"We all look a mess," Marianne said. "How're we goin' about tellin' them what happened?"

"Let me handle that," Rick said.

"Sure thing, officer." Marianne got out of the car, followed by Daryl and Rick.

She glanced at the house. Glenn was on watch looking a little miserable and Hershel came out to greet them.

"No trouble here?" Rick asked.

"None at all," Hershel said. "But it looks like you three ran into some."

"Nothing we couldn't handle," Rick said.

Hershel looked at Marianne and she shrugged. "I'm fine."

Daryl and Marianne each grabbed a duffle bag. Hershel grabbed the medicine and the basket, leaving Rick without anything to carry other than his rifle.

Carol and Beth were now on the front porch. They both looked concerned but Marianne brushed past them without saying anything.

When they entered the house Lori, who was sitting on one on the couches, took one look at them and frowned.

"What happened?" Maggie asked.

"We'll have a meeting a little later, after we get cleaned up," Rick said.

Marianne was all for that. When it had started to rain a few days earlier, the group had found every plastic container in the house and dumped them of their contents to put them outside so they could collect the rain.

With the abundance of water Carol and Beth had been doing laundry. There was even enough for everyone to wash but before Marianne went to take advantage of that she rummaged through the hand basket that Hershel had set on the dining room table.

She found what she was looking for at the bottom, grabbed it, walked back into the living room, and stood in front of Lori.

"I found some ginger cough drops. I don't know if they'll taste good but the ginger'll help with your morning sickness." She handed Lori the bag of cough drops. Lori grabbed the bag, looking taken aback. Marianne left before she could be thanked.

Marianne took a sponge bath using a washcloth and Beth had to help her wash her hair. Even though the water was cold, it felt good.

"I think I need to cut it," Marianne said as Beth rinsed her hair one last time. Droplets of water ran down her neck and onto her back, soaking into her sports bra.

"But it's so nice the way it is."

"A nice pain in the ass," she said as she toweled her hair.

After she was clean, Hershel changed her bandages and reported that he didn't see any damage which she happily told Daryl who was disgruntled because she had made him let Hershel check his bruises.

The group gathered in the living room. Marianne's damp hair was making her shiver so she huddled under a blanket near the fire. Beth sat to her left and Carl to her right, who was practicing shuffling with the new deck of cards.

Rick stood in the middle of them all. He was still pale but looked better than he had earlier.

"Walkers showed up at the pharmacy today. Marianne was able to lead some of them away but we still had to fight them off," Rick said. He left out the part where Daryl almost got bit, the gunshot, and how the two men had been trapped in the back room. "But since there's a group of them still in town, our time here is up. We're leaving tomorrow morning."

"What about Marianne?" Beth asked.

"I'll be fine," Marianne said. "Right Hershel?"

"She's okay to move, but I wouldn't recommend fighting walkers anytime soon. You got lucky today."

"Then it's settled. You all know what to do," Rick said.

* * *

Daryl jerked awake, ready to fight but it was just T-Dog who had roused him and by the looks of him it wasn't a walker emergency. He had his index finger over his mouth, signaling Daryl to be quiet. T-Dog motioned for him to follow. He led Daryl to the back of the house and Daryl saw the back door was open.

He was unsurprised by what he saw next. Marianne was standing in the middle of the backyard with her back to the house. The moonlight glinted off of something in her hand.

"I couldn't sleep. I kept waking up and then I felt a draft. Found the back door open and saw her out here. I tried talkin' to her but she didn't move or say anything and her eyes are all glassy. I didn't want to touch her." T-Dog pointed at Marianne's hand. "She's got a knife."

Daryl sighed. He hated seeing her like this; especially knowing whatever was causing it was making her suffer.

"Should we get Rick?" T-Dog asked.

"No, I got this."

Daryl slowly walked towards Marianne and stood in front of her about four feet away.

"Marianne?" For a second it looked like her eyes focused on him.

He stepped closer to her and tried to ease the knife out of her hand but her grip was strong. He'd have to get it away from her somehow without startling her. She could hurt herself or one of them.

"Marianne, I need the knife. Can you let it go?"

"I had to do it," she said in a pained voice.

Her grip loosened and he slipped the knife out of her hand.

"I had to do it."

"I believe you," Daryl said. He motioned for T-Dog to take the knife from him, which T-Dog did. "Let's get ya back to bed."

He put his hand on her shoulder to help steer her back to the house.

She shrugged him off. "I need to find Julia."

"We'll find her later." Daryl wondered who Julia was. He put his hand back on her shoulder but she stepped away from him.

"I have to find her."

"How about I find her for you?" He tried again and this time Marianne didn't remove his hand. Daryl gently led her back into the house, through the hallway, and into the bedroom with T-Dog following behind.

He helped her into bed. When her head rested on the pillow her eyes fluttered shut. Daryl pulled the blankets over her.

"I had to," Marianne whispered.

"I know you did." He brushed some hair off of her face and sighed, wishing that Marianne would tell him what was wrong. She'd be tired when she woke up; she always was when she sleepwalked.

"She did it again." Daryl and T-Dog turned around to see Rick leaning on the doorframe with his arms crossed.

"Yeah," Daryl said, hoping T-Dog wouldn't mention the knife.

"She's done this before?" T-Dog asked.

"We need to talk," Rick said, looking pointedly at Daryl.

* * *

 **A/N: I finished early and decided to post early since I had a huge dry spell and I wanted to try to make up for it. I hope you enjoyed the chapter!**

 **Any thoughts or reactions? I'd love to hear from you.**


	24. Chapter 24

**A/N: Thank you for the follows and the favorites and for continuing to read.**

 **And a thank you to** **aliiceroseee for the review! It's beyond great to hear that you love the story and you shipping Marianne and Rick made me smile.**

Disclaimer: I do not own the Walking Dead.

* * *

 **Chapter Twenty-four**

Marianne didn't want to open her eyes. Not only did they feel cemented shut, there was a pressure building behind them. Today of all days, when they were moving, she had to feel horrible even before rolling out of bed.

She was about to force herself to get up when someone shook her shoulder and said her name. _Not this again._

Marianne kept her eyes shut, hoping the dream would disappear.

"Marianne, you need'ta get up," the voice said. It was a man this time, not Julia. She wondered what fresh hell was waiting for her. "Marianne," the voice said. Daryl's voice.

She opened her eyes and found her brother leaning over her. Marianne blinked up at him and wondered what he was doing there.

"We're leavin' in fifteen."

"What?" She sat up a little too quickly and had to lean back down on the pillows. "How long did I sleep in?"

"About an hour. I didn't wanna wake you up."

"Why?" She asked, a little miffed.

Daryl bit on his thumb and Marianne didn't take this as a good sign. "You did it again last night. T-Dog found you in the backyard and I helped ya to bed. Rick woke up and saw us."

Marianne closed her eyes. The day was just getting better and better. "What did Rick say?"

"He told everyone about it while you were sleepin'. About both times. And that you had a knife."

A cold weight settled in her stomach and her head throbbed a little harder. Her eyes unfocused as she tried to remember if she had dreamed last night. It felt like she might have. "Did I hurt anyone?"

"No, not even close."

"What am I gonna do?" She wanted to stop sleepwalking but what she wanted more was for no one to find out what she had done, regardless of the fact that it was eating her up inside. Marianne knew it was selfish to keep putting the group at risk but she didn't know if she'd have a group after she told them.

" _We_ will figure somethin' out," Daryl said. She looked up at him and nodded.

"I'm sorry."

"Hey, you don't got a thing to be sorry for. Shit happens. S'not your fault." Daryl sounded so sure himself. If only she could believe it too.

Daryl left the room so she could get ready. She had packed last night and laid her clothes out on the bench at the end of the bed. She unenthusiastically pushed the blankets off of her and stood up, feeling the cold of the hardwood floor through her socks.

Marianne felt stiff and a little sore from yesterday's supply run. She was glad to find that her head didn't hurt any worse standing up then it did lying down. _Please let today be okay._

She changed as fast as her injury would allow her to and roughly stuffed the clothes she had slept in into her bag and then collected her weapons, putting them all in their rightful places. She wondered which knife Daryl had to take away from her last night and frowned.

He didn't deserve her doubt, not after everything he's done for her and was willing to do, and she hated herself for it. But then she thought about being stuck under Maggie's car and the sinking feeling she had when she realized no one was coming for her.

There was a knock on the door.

"Come in."

Daryl opened the door. "Breakfast." He threw a granola bar and a box of raisins at her in rapid succession. She caught both with ease before they could hit her in the face.

"Seriously?" She contemplated throwing the granola bar back at him to wipe the smirk off of his face.

"Makin' sure yer awake."

"And if I wasn't?"

"I would've had a good laugh."

"Ass."

Daryl grinned. "Your bag ready?" She nodded and he grabbed it. "I'll put it in the truck. We roll out in ten minutes." He paused in the doorway. "You good?"

"I'm good," she said and Daryl nodded. She waited for him to disappear down the hallway before she hid the granola bar and the raisins in her jacket pockets.

She wasn't going to eat right then. Her headache was making her nauseous and she didn't think she could hold any food down for long.

Marianne stalled by making the bed, even resorting to fluffing the pillows which she couldn't believe she was doing because it was stupid. The probability of someone else staying in the house was slim to none and what did it matter if the bed looked nice, but she was desperate.

She didn't want to leave the room and face the group. After waiting as long as she thought she could, Marianne slung her bow across her back and left the room, pausing at the end of the hallway. She'd have to rip the bandage off and get it over with.

Lori was the only one left in the living room, laying on the one of the couches with her eyes closed. Everyone who had caught a cold was still nursing it but the illness had been particularly hard on Lori. Not knowing whether or not any of the cold medicine they'd found was safe for the baby, she had to do without and suffer the full force of her symptoms.

Marianne thought she could have a clean getaway but she hadn't even started to pass by the couch when Lori opened her eyes and sat up, looking startled at Marianne's presence.

"I didn't hear you," Lori said.

Marianne could see pity mixed with fear in the other woman's face. She was afraid because of the knife. Lori would have an outright fit if she ever found out that Marianne had woken with a gun in her hand and her finger on the trigger.

She rushed away without saying anything back and nearly ran into Carol in the front doorway, who looked at her the same way Lori had.

"Sorry," Marianne muttered as Carol stepped out of the way to let her outside. Not wanting to see more pity and fear, Marianne planned to avoid looking at anyone else's face except for Daryl's.

It was a welcome sight to see most of the rest of them already sitting in their respective vehicles. Only Glenn, Rick, and Daryl were standing around. Glenn was leaning on the back of the hatchback, which it looked like he'd be driving. Rick and Daryl were on the street, next to Daryl's motorcycle which was parked behind her truck. It was still a little strange seeing him on it and not Merle, who had been very possessive of it, barely letting Daryl or Marianne lay a finger on it.

Despite the fact that the sky was covered in grey clouds, the light pressed into her eyes like it was a sunny day, making them ache. She didn't have a pair of sunglasses of her own yet so she reluctantly asked Glenn if she could borrow his, all the while staring at the brim of his baseball hat.

"Sure, you can keep them. I look like a dork in them anyways."

He handed them over and she gladly put them on. She noticed Glenn was staring at her and she couldn't help but glance at his face, which had an odd look on it she couldn't place so Marianne shifted uncertainly on her feet. "What?"

"Of course you make them look cool," he said shaking his head as he walked away to talk to Maggie, who had stepped out of the car and called his name. For a few seconds Marianne watched him leave with her head tilted, looking at him as if he was a strange new species she'd never seen before and was trying to figure out.

Marianne noticed Daryl and Rick kept looking over at her. Unfortunately, she'd have to walk in the general vicinity of Rick to get to her truck. She could avoid walking directly past him by cutting through the yard but she had a feeling Rick wanted to say a few words and wouldn't be deterred by that tactic.

She adjusted the strap of her bow on her shoulder and started down the driveway.

"I was thinkin', since you have room, someone could join you," Rick said when she reached the two men.

Marianne crossed her arms. "I'm drivin' alone today."

"Are you sure?" Rick asked, crossing his own arms.

"One-hundred percent," she said, not betraying that her head felt like it was being pummeled by a rubber mallet. "Shouldn't we be goin'?"

"Yeah." Rick uncrossed his arms. "Daryl's in the lead and you'll be takin' the rear. That sound good?" Marianne nodded at his question that wasn't actually a question. He seemed to ask a lot of those.

Rick left to get into the Chevy which Carol and Lori were now in; Maggie was back in the hatchback and Glenn along with her. Daryl settled onto the seat of his motorcycle.

"See you in a few," Marianne said to Daryl over her shoulder as she walked to her truck.

By the time she got into the truck Daryl had already started to leave. She grimaced at the rev of the motorcycle, the sound piercing through her head. This wasn't going to be a fun trip.

The group left the neighborhood behind for good.

* * *

They were, more or less, driving 35 mph on a well abused back road crowded on either side by overgrown trees and grass that looked like it hadn't been mowed in years. A few times they picked it up to 40 but Marianne wasn't privy to the reasons behind the occasional change in speed. She silently thanked whoever it was that sped them up because she was desperate for the move to be over. The quiet hum of the drive could only do so much to soothe her.

Marianne tried to empty her mind and let the road fill it. It was a struggle and it only worked for a couple of hours until her body became too demanding. She began to feel clammy and kept turning the heat on and off. She was incapable of deciding whether to take her jacket off or keep it on. Her head pounded, her mouth was dry, and every little bump on the road made her stomach flip.

She grabbed her full water bottle and wedged it between her thighs, unscrewing the cap with one hand. The first sip was heaven and the next thing she knew, the bottle was over half empty.

For a few seconds the long drink was a relief but then her stomach rebelled. Marianne hit the brakes, flung the door open, tumbled out and doubled over.

The water was still as cool coming up as it was going down. And then, when there was no more water left her body didn't stop heaving and the sour taste of bile filled her mouth. When she was done she felt drained. Her abdomen was sore and she was desperately in need of rinsing her mouth out. The leftover taste made her shudder.

Now that her unpleasant distraction had ended, Marianne's mind turned to the group and she hoped the open truck door had mostly shielded her from curious eyes.

Marianne looked up and saw they were gone.

She cursed. In her haste to not throw up all over the wheel she had forgotten to signal the others to stop too.

She scrambled back into the truck and pushed down the gas pedal, thankful it hadn't rolled away because she hadn't put it in park. She could catch up; her episode having only been less than two minutes combined with the pace they had set should make it easy enough but Marianne had only gone a little way when she stopped at a three way intersection.

It was a decision she wasn't capable of making. The wrong one would be disastrous.

Her grip on the wheel intensified making her fingers ache. She let go and put the truck in park before turning it off, ever aware that she needed to conserve gas.

Marianne's thoughts were erratic and her headache made it difficult to straighten them out. The past few days Rick had casually mentioned his plan for moving on. She tried to remember them but to no avail and she had nothing else to go on. Since she had slept in, she hadn't been there when he had finalized their route. Marianne only had a rough idea of where they were going. North.

Panic crawled into her chest, making it hard to fill her lungs with air. She fought against it and successfully regulated her breathing but that was about it. Her heart rate accelerated, her chest still felt tight, and tears threatened to fall.

Marianne got out of the truck. She had to keep herself together. She walked to the middle of the intersection and studied each road, looking for any sign of where the group had gone but there weren't even any leaves on the asphalt for the cars to disturb.

She was living one of her worst nightmares. To keep her panic from worsening, she reminded herself that this wasn't like last time. Once they realized she was gone, someone would come looking for her, so for now she'd do what Daryl had told her on their first trip into the woods. If she got lost, stay put until he found her.

Marianne climbed into the truck, keeping the door open. The wind was picking up and she wanted to feel something other than the turmoil inside of her and the cold air biting into her skin did the trick.

 _They'll come back._

Rationally, Marianne knew what felt like an hour to her was, in reality, closer to fifteen minutes but her mind wasn't being rational. Worry made her bite her bottom lip until it was raw. How far away had they driven? Had they noticed she was gone yet?

 _He'll come back._

She watched apathetically as a walker emerged from the trees and zeroed in on her. She shut the truck door before it reached her and about five minutes passed while she ignored the walker clawing at her window and pressing its face into it. Its raspy growl faded into the background.

Marianne closed her eyes. Her head still hurt and she was exhausted. She felt herself drifting into the peaceful oblivion of sleep but a soft thump pulled her awake. There was no longer any banging on the window and she didn't hear the walker growling.

A welcome sight greeted her eyes.

Daryl was standing a few yards away from the front of the truck, lowering his crossbow. The anxious look on his face stopped her from any feelings of happiness, which were replaced by guilt. She had been so absorbed with her own worry and panic that she forgot to think about how any of the others felt.

Before she could do it herself, Daryl reached the door and opened it.

"Are you alright? Are you bit?" He looked her over for signs of a bite.

"I'm not bit. Watch out, I got sick." She pointed at the wet spot on the asphalt but Daryl was already standing on it.

He looked down at the ground and then back at her. "I've stepped in worse. What the hell happened?" Daryl asked in a not unkind voice.

"I forgot to honk the horn." Marianne buried her face in her hands. It sounded worse out loud than it did in her head.

"You look pale. Did you catch the cold?"

"No, but my head hurts real bad and I can't even keep water down," she said in a muffled voice.

"Let me check for a fever." She lifted her face from her hands and he put one of his own on her forehead. "You don't feel hot." Daryl took his hand away and frowned. "It's one of those headaches, ain't it?" She nodded. "You haven't got one in years."

She leaned the left side of her head against the headrest. "I forgot how much they suck."

"I haven't. You okay to drive?" Daryl asked.

"Yeah, I have'ta be." She didn't have a choice. There was no way she was abandoning the truck and its supplies.

He looked doubtful. "We can wait a little longer."

"No, everyone's probably worried and Rick's probably pissed we're wastin' daylight." Thinking about having to face Rick made her head hurt even more.

"I don't think he will be. He's the one that noticed you were gone. From where I was standin' he looked worried."

Marianne made a noise of disbelief. "Sure, and the dead ain't walkin'."

Daryl let out a heavy sigh. "I'm still mad at him too."

"You don't seem all that angry," she said with a challenge in her voice she hadn't meant to put there.

Daryl seemed to overlook it and shrugged. "'Cause I'm stoic. Ain't that what you called me that one time?"

"Sure, 'that one time'."

"Yer too sick for that kinda sass."

Marianne's laugh turned into a groan. "Don't make me laugh, it hurts."

She had to assure Daryl two more times that she was okay to drive before he got onto his motorcycle and started leading the way to the group. As time passed by, her apprehension grew.

It was only about a ten minute drive to reach them but it was long enough for dread to settle in. When it came to killing walkers she was nearly fearless, but when it came do dealing with people sometimes all she wanted to do was run and hide.

Marianne pulled up behind the Chevy, keeping one car length between them. Everyone except for Lori was standing around and all of them had turned to look at her and Daryl. She may have been uneasy at the prospect of facing them but she was too miserable to feel embarrassed.

She stayed in the truck and watched Daryl walk up to Rick, who had his hands on his hips and looked a little irritated. Hershel joined them and then Rick called T-Dog over.

Marianne felt cowardly, sitting by and letting her brother deal with the situation and not stepping in herself. It was her mess after all. But instead of joining the conversation, she sat and waited, and while she waited she massaged her forehead, trying to relieve some of the pressure behind her eyes. During the drive she had been able to block out some of the painful throbbing by concentrating on the road but now that diversion was over.

The four men broke apart and Daryl began walking towards her. She opened the door so they could talk.

"So what's the verdict?" Marianne asked.

"I told 'em what happened. They seemed to understand," Daryl said. "Hershel's gonna come check on you and Rick wanted to talk to ya but I told him to stay away for now."

"Good."

"And T-Dog'll be drivin'."

"Is he okay to?" T-Dog was still lagging from his cold and he'd had to wake up three hours early for his watch.

"Better than you." He gestured towards her. "He's not pukin' his guts up all over the road."

"Point taken."

T-Dog walked up and stood next to Daryl. "Hey, you okay?"

"No," Marianne said. That always seemed to be the answer whenever he asked that question.

"It's a good thing I'm here then," T-Dog said, taking her answer in stride and trying to keep the mood light.

"Let me move so you can get in." Daryl and T-Dog backed away to give her room to hop out of the truck. She walked to the passenger side by going around the back of the truck, instead of the front, to keep as far away from Rick as possible.

Marianne got back into the truck, her head protesting at all of the movement. She closed her eyes for a few seconds and when she opened them Hershel was standing nearby.

"My wife used to get migraines," he said while stepping a little closer. "It takes a lot of out a person."Hershel took a pill bottle out of his jacket pocket. "Here, take some aspirin." He opened it and tapped two pills into the upturned cap.

"No, don't waste it on me."

"It's no waste. It's why we have it in the first place. And it'll expire eventually, might as well use it while it's good."

Hershel made a good point so she grudgingly held out her hand palm up where, with a smile of approval, he placed the pills. She swallowed them dry and regretting that decision took a tiny sip of water. Marianne held her breath as she waited for her stomach's verdict and let it go when the pills stayed where they were.

"Is there anything else we can get you?"

"A new head."

Hershel chuckled. "It's nice to see your sense of humor is intact."

"Nothin' else seems to be," Marianne said in a low voice.

Hershel gave her a kind smile. "Give it time. It'll get better."

Hershel left and they were off in less than a minute. Marianne reclined her seat as far as it would go and put a damp bandana over her eyes, wondering if she would be able to fall asleep despite the pain.

* * *

Even before fully waking up, Marianne knew the truck had stopped. She pulled the bandana away from her eyes and opened them, blinking rapidly at the sudden change from darkness to light.

It looked like everyone save her, T-Dog, and Lori were out of the cars, stretching their legs. Glenn was standing on the hood of the hatchback with Maggie on the ground beside him while Daryl, Hershel, and Rick were gathered around the hood of the Chevy. Beth and Carl were talking and Carol was getting something from the back of the Chevy.

"What's goin' on?" Marianne asked as she put her seat in the upright position. Her head didn't hurt as much as earlier and her stomach felt almost back to normal.

"We hit a roadblock and had to backtrack. Rick, Daryl, and Hershel are tryin' to find a new route," T-Dog said, sounding tired and still a little stuffed up from his cold. She felt bad that he had to replace her in the driver's seat.

"What kind of roadblock?" She asked, putting her sunglasses back on. Her eyes were still sensitive to the light.

"A big tree fell across the road. There's no way we can move it," T-Dog said. He seemed to be treating her normal and wasn't giving her any looks, which was a good sign.

"That's unfortunate."

"Tell me about it. We've been sittin' here for almost half an hour. Those three haven't looked up from the map the whole time." He gestured towards Daryl, Rick, and Hershel.

"Why are you still sittin' in here?" Marianne asked.

"'Cause I didn't want to leave you alone."

"T-Dog, you didn't have to do that. You can get out if you want. I'll be fine."

Marianne had to persuade him to leave the truck. When he did she wondered if he had stayed with her because he knew about her sleepwalking—had in fact seen her doing it.

She sighed and watched T-Dog walk towards the group. As each one saw him, they turned to look at her but, with her sunglasses on and her head leaning back on her seat's headrest like she might be sleeping, they wouldn't be able to tell if her eyes were open or not.

T-Dog joined the three men and began looking at the map too. Carol had finally found whatever it was she was looking for and was handing it to Lori. While the others had only given her a cursory glance, Beth and Carl took turns staring at her, looking like they wanted to come over and talk to her. Not feeling up to talking with them, she hoped they wouldn't.

She got her wish because after a few minutes Rick folded up the map and everyone was getting back into the cars.

T-Dog opened the truck door and climbed in with a smile on his face. "Finally," he said.

"What was the problem?"

"They were tryin' to avoid any highways and big towns without goin' too much out of the way. We can't afford the gas," T-Dog said. Marianne felt a pang of guilt because Daryl had used extra gas backtracking to find her. T-Dog didn't seem to notice. "Carol handed me your lunch in case you felt up to eating." He held up a fruit cup and a package of peanut butter sandwich crackers.

"I'll take it." The longer she had been awake, the calmer her stomach had become until the nausea was gone and all that was left was hunger. T-Dog gave her the food and she set it on her lap before digging the granola bar and raisins out of her pockets.

"I see you didn't eat breakfast. You must be starvin'."

T-Dog started the truck and didn't have to wait long for them to start moving.

Marianne changed her focus to her food, deciding to eat the raisins first and save the fruit cup for last. She was surprised there was a comfortable silence between them while she ate.

Her thoughts stayed on one topic and when she finished her lunch she decided she had to know.

"What did Rick say about me this morning?" Marianne asked. "Daryl didn't give me any details."

T-Dog looked hesitant to tell her. "Uh, well, he said that your sleepwalking could be a danger to the group. And, uh, he called you a liability."

"He called me a what?" She asked, not quite believing her ears.

"A liability."

"What's he gonna do? Exile me?"

He shook his head. "Rick won't do that."

"How far do ya think he'd go if his family was in danger? Because if you haven't noticed, apparently I'm a danger to this group."

"I don't think you're dangerous."

"You sure about that?" The words slipped out of her mouth unbidden and she inwardly cringed at them.

"What do you mean?"

She turned her head to look out the passenger window. "Nothin'."

The rest of the ride was a one sided conversation, with Marianne's only contributions being an occasional noise or a nod. T-Dog didn't seem to mind and it looked like he didn't expect much of anything else from her.

The brake lights of the Chevy lit up and their little caravan came to a halt. Marianne sat up straight, wondering if there were walkers.

"Daryl must've found somethin'," T-Dog said.

From her angle, Marianne only saw trees but she heard the sound of Daryl's motorcycle fade off to the right. After a couple of minutes of silence, she heard him coming back and then the engine cut off.

She saw him walk to the driver's side of the Chevy and Rick rolled down his window so the two could talk. Whatever was said, it was brief and the cars were moving again. T-Dog followed them and turned onto a dirt and gravel road covered in weeds and only wide enough for one car.

They pulled up to a lone two story house set about a quarter of a mile off of the road. She watched from the truck as Daryl and Rick entered the house to clear it. They shortly reappeared, Rick giving the signal that all was safe.

Everyone sprung into action, looking like a well oiled machine as they each began pulling things out of the vehicles and bringing them into the house. Marianne felt like a broken spare part.

She unbuckled her seatbelt but made no further move to join the group. It was only when T-Dog began taking stuff from the truck bed that she gained momentum, refusing to be useless. She told herself she could do it, that she could be around the others. If they cared so much about her, like people kept telling her, than it wouldn't matter what had happened earlier in the day or last night.

Marianne left the truck and grabbed her bag and her bow, planning to bring those inside first mostly because she was unsure of what else the group wanted from the truck.

When she entered the house she saw that all of the furniture was covered in yellowing white sheets. There were cobwebs on the staircase banister and the ceiling fan in the front room, presumably the living room going by the shapes of the covered furniture.

Beth and Carol began removing the sheets and even though they did so carefully, dust still billowed into the air, making both of them sneeze and everyone in the room began rubbing their eyes, including Marianne.

Carl announced that there wasn't any running water, which surprised nobody, and began opening the curtains, which were also coated in dust, so they could see better while they set everything up.

The extra light didn't do the place any favors. The wallpaper was peeling, the staircase runner was worn through the middle, and there were cracks in the ceiling. Marianne noticed there was a large square area of the hardwood floor that wasn't scratched or scuffed up, indicating there might have been a rug there.

Marianne set her things aside and began helping take the sheets off. Maggie joined her and soon both of them were coughing.

"How long do you think this place has been closed up?" Maggie asked no one in particular as she added another sheet to the growing pile by the front door.

"Judging by the dust, at least a couple of years," Hershel said.

"I guess we won't be findin' any food in here." T-Dog set two large water jugs by the fireplace.

"The kitchen's empty. I already checked," Carl said.

There were no more sheets for Marianne to remove and everything else seemed to be taken care of by one person or another so she stood there with nothing to do and couldn't bring herself to ask someone if they needed help—that would require talking.

She wandered to the hallway in the back of the house. There were three doors, two on the right and one at the end. The closest door was already open and she glanced in at the kitchen when she walked by. The second door on the right opened to a room empty except for a handful of rolled up rugs. The largest looking like it would fit the square of unmarked floor in the living room.

The last door led to the basement, which she had no interest in exploring and hoped Rick or Lori would tell Carl to stay out of it.

Marianne shut the basement door, walked to the beginning of the hallway, and leaned on a wall so that her back was to the hallway and she faced the living room. Only Daryl was absent and she wondered where he was.

"Do you think it's safe to use?" Carol asked, pointing to the fireplace.

"I guess we'll find out when we start a fire," Glenn said with a shrug.

Rick shook his head. "Not if it means burning the house down."

Hershel bent over to examine the fireplace. "The flue was closed and once we clear out the spider webs we should be okay."

Marianne felt a presence behind her and quickly turned around. She was startled to see Daryl standing there. She hadn't seen him in the kitchen or the empty room and she knew he wouldn't have been poking around in the basement since he didn't have a flashlight.

"Where did you come from?"

"Outside," Daryl said. She gave him a questioning look. "The back door's in the kitchen. It opens onto a porch. Be careful on the stairs. I think they're rottin' through."

"Alright." Marianne turned back around and Daryl moved to stand next to her. "There's some rugs in the room next to the kitchen. If they're not gross we can spread 'em out. Give us something a little more comfortable to sleep on."

"Why don't you go tell them that?"

"I told you so you could tell 'em," she said. Daryl raised his eyebrows at her. "Look, I don't feel like talkin' to anyone. I don't even feel like fightin' with Rick right now and that's my new favorite pastime."

Daryl snorted, shaking his head. "I'll tell 'em, but you have'ta talk sooner or later."

"Later sounds good."

The rugs were inspected and found to be a little dusty but in a good enough condition to sleep on. Some of the furniture needed to be moved to lay the rugs down, which wasn't a big deal since they were going to rearrange things anyways.

Barred from doing any heavy lifting Marianne went halfway up the stairs, where the railing stopped and a wall started, and sat down, getting a nice view of everybody in the living room while being partially hidden from sight.

When the living room was organized to satisfaction, a discussion on sleeping arrangements began which made Marianne retreat even further up the stairs when she heard her name mentioned. Sleep had become a touchy subject for her but now that it was a group issue, she could no longer disregard it and fall asleep hoping for the best.

She sat on the top step, covered in shadows trying not to listen to the conversation happening below her but every time her name was said, it sounded loud and clear.

Marianne sighed. A twinge of pain behind her eyes reminded her she wasn't completely over her headache. It threatened to come back any second and she hoped it would go away by morning.

Hershel appeared at the bottom of the stairs and she inwardly groaned. He began walking up the stairs and she reluctantly scooted to the side so he could sit down next to her like she knew he was planning to.

"How are you feelin'?" Hershel asked as he eased himself down next to her.

"Better." She began picking at some loose threads of the staircase runner.

He nodded. "Do you get migraines often?"

"No."

"Must be the stress you're under," Hershel said.

"Everyone's stressed." And they weren't getting sick or sleepwalking or freaking out over a walker that looked like a person they used to know.

"I think you've had more than your fair share."

"Don't make excuses for me." She glanced over at Hershel. "Look, I don't want to talk right now."

"Fair enough. I'll just tell you one more thing. We've figured out where you're sleepin'. You'll be in the middle of us so if you get up you'll end up wakin' somebody."

"Great," she said, not sounding like it was great at all. Here she was, wanting to get away from people and now she'd literally be in the middle of them. And as if she wasn't feeling bad enough about it in the first place, if she did sleepwalk she'd end up interrupting one or more people's much needed sleep. She wasn't looking forward to bed.

* * *

Daryl had the first watch of the night. He sat on one of the dining room chairs Carol had brought out onto the front porch, with his crossbow leaning against his leg. For now it was calm outside and he could hear people getting ready for bed in the house. Soon all would be quiet.

He couldn't wait for tomorrow, for dawn to break bringing a fresh start along with it. Today was a day he never wanted to repeat. When Rick had honked he thought it'd have something do with Lori or that Rick had seen something that Daryl had missed. In no way had he expected the real reason why they had stopped.

The horror that rose inside of him almost matched what he felt when she hadn't arrived at the highway safe and sound. It was a nightmare turned into reality.

How long had she been gone? Was she hurt? Did the truck break down? Why hadn't she signaled for them stop? His mind had raced through scenarios of what could have happened, however impossible most of them were.

He and Rick had a short, heated argument. Rick didn't want him to take off by himself to go look for Marianne. He didn't want Daryl alone but Daryl was faster on his own and to him, there was no time to waste. The urgency he felt to leave made him walk away, cutting the fight short, and take off on his motorcycle.

The door opened and he turned around to see Marianne coming out of the house. The moonlight fell on her face and he could see the dark circles under her eyes.

"You should be sleepin'," he said.

Marianne sat down on the chair next to him. "I'm not tired."

"Yeah, and I'm not hungry." Daryl said with a scoff.

"Are you getting enough to eat?"

"Don't be spinnin' this conversation off of you and onto me."

"Okay then," she said with a mischievous look on her face. "How long do you think Rick's gonna let us stay? He didn't say anything about leavin' in the morning." Daryl just stared at her. "What? I'm not conversin' about _you_."

Daryl shook his head. There was no stopping her when she turned her mind to teasing so he let the matter go and planned to talk with Marianne about her tiredness later. "Tomorrow and then we're probably outta here."

"I'm sick of movin' and now it feels like we'll be doin' it the rest of our lives." Marianne sighed. "Most of the time I didn't stay more than a night in any place until I got hurt."

Daryl did a double take. It was the first time she had mentioned anything specific about her time separated from the group apart from how she had injured herself. At the moment, he didn't think he'd ever get any details from Marianne without pushing her to talk and he wasn't close to the point where he would resort to that.

Was she ready to open up? He had to ask her and maybe if she answered, her sleepwalking would go away and hopefully the nightmares that went along with it too. "Who's Julia?"

Her head turned sharply towards him and he saw a spark of panic in her eyes. "How do you know that name?"

"You said it last night. And that you had to find her."

There was a long pause and Daryl thought she was going to get up and leave without answering him but then, in a quiet voice that was almost a whisper, she began to talk.

"I don't know what the 'finding her' part is all about. Must've had somethin' to do with the dream I can't remember. I'm glad I don't." Marianne looked up at the stars and there was another long pause. "I found a woman in a house near the one I was stayin' in. With a bite, bleedin' all over a bathroom counter. Bit by her sister-in-law."

"And it was Julia?"

She nodded slowly. "Yeah, it was Julia." Marianne sighed again. "I helped her. Got her to bed, made her as comfortable as possible. Put down her walker niece in the next room. And I watched her die. And then drove a knife into her head."

He could sense that there was more she hadn't told him yet so Daryl stayed quiet in case Marianne wanted to keep talking but after awhile it was evident that she wasn't going to.

"Is that what's been botherin' you?" He hoped that was all but by the way she had gone on about how bad whatever it was that had happened, he had a feeling this wasn't the only thing haunting her.

"I guess it must be, a little. I wasn't alone anymore and then I was again. Nobody in the whole world knew I was alive." Marianne looked down at her lap and messed with the end of her braid. "But it's just a small piece."

"So there's more?"

She looked up and into his eyes. "There's always more."

* * *

 **A/N: Notice anything different about this chapter? It's longer! I aimed to write a longer chapter and this is about 2k-3k words more than the other ones, except for chapter 18 which used to be the longest. I wasn't expecting to write this much and I hope it didn't get boring.**

 **Please let me know what you think about the length. Do you like it, dislike it, don't care? At this point I'm not sure if I'll make this a regular thing or if I can even write this much for each chapter. It does take me a couple of days longer so that's a downside.**

 **Any reactions or thoughts? I'm _really_ interested to hear what you have to say.**


	25. Chapter 25

**A/N: Thank you for the follows and the favorites.**

 **Thank you so much to Dead girl sophie for the review! I loved to hear that you love it.**

* * *

 **Chapter Twenty-five**

For the next week Marianne kept herself as separate as possible from the group, offering to take extra watches, volunteering for chores that could be done in solitude, and spending her free time away from the main living area where everyone else congregated even if it meant being away from the warmth of the fire.

Marianne hadn't opened up to Daryl any further than telling him about Julia and she didn't talk much to anyone except for Daryl and T-Dog, the latter only because they took turns driving the truck and even she couldn't stand hours on end of uncomfortable silence.

And then there was Hershel, who she would talk to in sentences of four words or less when he changed her bandages and checked on her injury, which according to him was healing nicely.

The burning sensation that was always there had lessened, taking the bandages off became less painful, and she could bend over more without any further discomfort. In two weeks or so, Hershel predicted she'd be back in fighting form. Although, Marianne very much doubted that. She might be physically fine, but mentally she knew she was a mess.

In the beginning of the second week after her second sleepwalking episode Carl and Beth had contrived a way to ride in the truck for one of their moves and Carl bugged Marianne, who wished she was driving instead of T-Dog, until she played a game of Go Fish with them.

After that, she began interacting with the group a little more each day until it was almost back to normal. It helped that she hadn't sleepwalked again.

But the more time she spent with the group, the more times she ran into Rick. Whenever he entered the same room as her, she'd leave and when she couldn't do that Marianne would turn her back on him and ignore him. And when she wasn't ignoring him she was making things difficult for him.

Marianne found his buttons and pushed them.

"I don't think we should leave tomorrow," Marianne said, looking at their maps along with Rick and Daryl. They were able to spread out a few of them on a dining table that seated ten and one of the maps was the one Marianne had used when she had been on her own. Her penciled markings were still there, reminders of a lonely trip.

"I've told you this already, we need to stay ahead of the herd," Rick said, tapping his finger on the biggest map.

"What herd? We haven't seen one in over a week. We need a breather." Marianne crossed her arms. "We haven't been in one place for more than a day for almost two weeks. At this rate we'll run out of places to stay by the end of spring."

Rick straightened up and put his hands on his hips. "We haven't seen a herd because we've kept ahead of it. If you haven't noticed, I'm tryin' to keep us safe." He gave her a warning in a hard stare that Marianne ignored.

"It's not _safe_ to have us all dead on our feet. We need to rest while we can. I have a feelin' we'll have plenty of time to flee walkers later." Rick didn't look convinced so Marianne went in for the kill. "Lori needs to rest. She hasn't been sleepin' good the past few days. "

Rick gave her a sharp look. "How do you know? Did she tell you?"

"Does it matter?" It did in fact matter. The only reason she knew Lori kept waking up several times a night was because she was usually staring at the ceiling of wherever they were staying, only sleeping three hours at the most. Maybe she could finally get some rest at this new place. "It's comfortable here. We can fish, Daryl can hunt, there's plenty of water."

They were staying in a house, obviously someone's vacation home, nestled in the bend of a river. It was only one story but of a comfortable size, with three bedrooms, a large living room featuring a big fireplace, and a den. According to Carol and Lori, the appliances in the kitchen, now completely useless, were high end.

"Whoever owned this place had money," T-Dog had announced after he'd made a circuit of the house.

The place was almost too good to be true and maybe that's why Rick was wary of staying there. Only an hour after they'd found the house in the late afternoon, he was already planning on leaving.

Marianne could see Rick's jaw clench. She knew he hated going back on his decisions. How could his word be final if he kept changing it because of another person's opinions? But, nine out of ten times he didn't change his mind because of Marianne and seven out of ten times Marianne ignored this and did what she wanted anyways. So far, Rick hadn't done anything about it other than glare at her but she knew she'd eventually push him past his limit and that it would be any day now.

Rick let out a sigh of frustration and shook his head as if he couldn't believe what he was about to say. "Fine, we'll stay. But on a day by day basis. I'm not guaranteein' we'll be here after tomorrow," Rick said and Marianne smirked.

"Fine by me," Daryl said before he left, heading out to try to catch dinner with what was left of the day.

Rick began folding up the maps and Marianne was about to leave when Rick spoke. "I want a word with you."

"A word? You just had six."

"Don't start. We need to have a serious talk." Rick finished folding the last map and stacked them on the table.

"Okay officer."

"Let's go to the kitchen." Rick motioned for her to follow and Marianne pursed her lips. The dining room didn't have a door separating it from the living room, but the kitchen had one and she didn't like that he wanted privacy for their conversation. After a few seconds delay, she followed him.

They walked into the kitchen and Rick closed the door behind them. Marianne hopped up to sit on the counter opposite of the window above the kitchen sink. No one had bothered to close those curtains and she got a nice view of the outside, which Marianne gave her attention to instead of Rick.

"This needs to stop."

"What does?" Marianne asked, still looking out the window. A small brown bird flew by.

From the corner of her eye she could see Rick put his hands on his hips. "I've been easy on you because of the circumstances."

Marianne quickly turned her head to look at him. "Circumstances? You mean that one time you left me on the farm to die?"

"I've tried to apologize but you won't listen."

Marianne slid off of the counter. "I don't want an apology. I want my life back!" An apology was useless to her. It didn't change what had happened and she wasn't inclined to forgive Rick. As far as she was concerned, he didn't deserve her forgiveness. "Unless you can go back in time and change it, I don't want a thing from you." The conversation was over for her. She didn't want to hear anything else he had to say so Marianne stormed out of the room and slammed the kitchen door before Rick could try to follow her.

She ignored the looks of surprise and curiosity of the people in the living room as she headed outside onto the back porch. She briefly thought about taking a walk in the woods but she didn't feel like going back into the house to retrieve her bow. Instead, she made do by sitting on the porch swing.

She was fully aware the anger ever present inside of her was exhausting but she didn't want to let it go. Lately, it was one of the only things that kept her going. For a little over a month, finding the group had been her drive to survive but now that they were found it was Daryl and her anger that gave her a purpose.

Marianne heard the back door open but didn't turn to see who it was. She didn't think Rick would dare seek her out at the moment and even though she wanted to be alone, as long as whoever it was didn't ask her about what had just happened, she would tolerate them.

"Mind if I sit here?" Glenn asked. She was a little glad it was him. He wouldn't ask her any personal questions and she had to admit, he almost always amused her when he was around.

"If ya want, S'not like I can stop you."

"I'm pretty sure you could. You could look at me and I'd run away." Marianne stared at him and Glenn looked away nervously. "I mean... it's not like you're only scary."

Marianne continued to stare for a few more seconds and then let out a short laugh. "Like that?"

"Oh God, don't do that. I almost had a heart attack."

"I'd say sorry, but I'm not." Marianne smirked. "You really think I'm scary?" Glenn opened his mouth but nothing came out and he furtively looked around.

Marianne snorted. "I won't make you answer that."

Glenn looked grateful and they sat in silence for a few minutes. Marianne let her gaze wander, enjoying the scenery as much as she was looking out for signs of trouble.

"I think we missed Thanksgiving," Glenn suddenly said.

Marianne shrugged one shoulder. If he wanted to commiserate he was talking to the wrong person. "So what? It's not like we have much to be thankful for."

"How about that we're alive," he said incredulously.

"You call what we're doin' livin'?"

Glenn tried again. "Well, we have each other."

"And most of our friends and family are dead," she pointed out.

"There's a roof over our heads," he countered.

"For now."

"We have something to eat." He sounded determined to convince her that they could be thankful for something.

"Our food supply is almost gone."

"You're a real bummer, you know that?" Being upset seemed to make him forget to be afraid of calling Marianne names.

"Call me what you like, I'm just tellin' the truth Glenn."

"Yeah, well, the truth sucks."

Marianne felt a little bad for Glenn. What he needed at the moment was a distraction and so did she. "Hey, you wanna check out the shed?"

It stood behind the house and earlier she had to pick its lock so Daryl could check it for walkers because the doors were too sturdy to kick in and the windows were too small for even Carl to squeeze through.

Although, calling it a shed was misleading. When Daryl exited it he mentioned it was nicer and bigger than the Dixon's house.

"There's gotta be thousands of dollars worth of fishing poles in there," Daryl had said.

Exploring the shed had been put aside for later so they could do their usual routine of setting up camp in a new place but after that was finished they still hadn't gotten around to it. A chance to rest beat out curiosity.

Neither of them bothered to ask anyone else if they wanted to have a look and went straight to the shed, Marianne in the lead. She opened the door and entered first, Glenn close behind her. The windows let the evening light in which was enough to see by.

There was a work table with myriad of tools to the left, a lawn mower, two kayaks, a few stacks of storage containers, gardening tools, fishing equipment at the back, and a safe in the far right corner.

Glenn and Marianne stood in front of the safe, which was almost taller than they were.

"What do you think's in it?" Glenn asked.

"I think it's a gun safe."

"Really?" Glenn's face lit up. "You think there are guns in there?"

"Probably. And nice ones too." Marianne examined the keypad. It looked like it still had power.

"Too bad we don't know the combination," Glenn said, now sounding disappointed.

Marianne took a few steps back and bit her lip as she stared at it. Being Merle's little sister meant you learned certain things, like how to hotwire a car or break into safes. "We might not need a combination. Let me see if I can find..." Marianne walked back to the work table and hoped whoever owned the tools actually used them and that there were scraps leftover from whatever projects they worked on.

"Find what?" Glenn asked as Marianne began rummaging through the tool chest and then under the work table.

"This." Marianne stood and held up a long, thin piece of sheet metal.

"That?" Glenn sounded skeptical.

Marianne began walking back to the safe. "Sometimes there's a reset button for the combination on the side of the door." Glenn followed her and watched as she inserted the piece of metal into the crack on the side of the door where the hinges were. "If we're lucky, this will have one." She slid the metal up and down. "If not, we'll try something with a little more force." Suddenly there was a beep. Marianne let go of the metal and punched in a new combination. She turned to Glenn. "Go ahead and open it. It's 1,2,3,4,5."

Glenn put in the new combination and pulled the handle. The door opened without a problem. "No way. It can't be that easy." Glenn looked at her with wide eyes.

"Home safes only keep out people who follow the rules and Merle didn't follow the rules. Now let's see what we got."

Glenn opened the door all the way so they could both see in. The safe wasn't completely full but it wasn't empty either. There were two hunting rifles, one handgun, and four boxes of ammo.

Marianne picked up each box of ammo and found that they were unopened. "That's 200 rounds."

"Holy shit. That's a lot of dead walkers."

"We could start shooting practice again. Carol and Beth need it and Carl could use some more and Lori's probably a little rusty." Marianne wanted every member of the group to have the ability to protect themselves. Now that she was thinking about it, Carl needed to learn how to kill a walker up close and without a gun. They couldn't always rely on somebody being there for him.

"Do you think Rick will go for it?" Glenn asked, looking at Marianne now instead of the guns.

She nodded. "Yeah, we just have to be careful about the noise." Marianne frowned. They'd have to drive away from where they were staying which meant using gas they might not be able to spare. They'd figure something out. She turned to Glenn. "You should show Rick."

"You're not going to?" He asked as if he hadn't heard her yelling at Rick earlier.

"No, it's not a good idea."

"But you're the one that got it open." Glenn gestured at the safe.

Marianne shook her head. "Still not a good idea. You show him while I see if I can help with dinner. Daryl might be back with somethin'," she said knowing full well that Daryl would be gone for at least another hour.

The two of them left the shed together but parted ways at the back porch. Marianne went around to the front of the house while Glenn went inside to get Rick. She exchanged a few words with T-Dog, who was on watch, while she waited until she was sure Rick was outside before she went back into the house.

Marianne entered the living room as if nothing had happened and nothing was wrong. She found that if she acted that way people asked fewer questions.

She looked around the living room. Carol was tending the fire and Lori was sitting on one of the couches, her eyes closed and a hand on her growing stomach. Hershel was reading and it looked like his daughters were taking inventory of their food. They wouldn't be starting dinner until Daryl returned. Depending on if he caught anything and how much, they wouldn't be dipping into their food supply that evening.

Marianne was about to walk over to Carol to ask her if they needed more water from the river when Hershel closed his book and stood up. "Marianne, let's check that bandage."

Marianne sighed and wondered if Hershel was getting as annoyed as she was by this daily task. She dutifully followed him into the closest bedroom and sat on the box spring. The mattress, along with two others, had been dragged into the living room since no one wanted to sleep in the cold bedrooms. They had two of them leaning on a living room wall to free up floor space during the day.

The chilled air made her shiver as she took her jacket off and lifted her shirt. She began taking the bandage off while Hershel stood aside patiently.

"We heard you yelling at Rick earlier," Hershel said suddenly and Marianne stopped moving. "You blame him for what happened to you out there."

She felt ambushed and cornered which made her angry. She didn't want to talk about her and Rick and she definitely wasn't in the mood to hear any fatherly advice. Was this a spur of the moment thing or had he planned this?

Marianne looked up at Hershel and scowled. "Yes. I blame him for the consequences of his decision that _I_ had to endure."

"I know it's hard but you should think about forgiveness."

Marianne scoffed. "You don't know what you're askin' me to forgive."

"I can tell your constant animosity is wearing on you. And it's hard on the rest of us," Hershel said and Marianne thought that last part was a low blow. She hated that he was right to think that her doing anything to hurt the group would make her feel bad, but at the moment it didn't make her feel bad enough to bury the hatchet.

"Whatever you're tryin' to do here, you can stop. It's not gonna work."

"You understand, I had to try." Hershel sounded weary so Marianne ignored it by focusing on the bandage again.

When it was off both of them examined her stomach. There were already patches of skin that were completely healed, the new skin paler than the rest of her. It only hurt now when she moved the wrong way and there weren't as many wrong ways to move as there used to be.

Hershel straightened up. "You don't have to wear the bandages any longer. There shouldn't be any problems."

Marianne felt a small surge of happiness. Not having to deal with bandages made it feel like she could finally see the light at the end of this very tedious and inconvenient tunnel. She yearned to be able to hunt again and not to have her injury limit what she could do.

Hershel left the room while she rebuttoned her shirt and put her jacket back on, feeling much lighter without the extra layer.

When she went back into the living room she noticed Glenn was back and Rick was sitting at the dining room table with the two rifles and the boxes of ammo on the table. He was so focused on taking apart and inspecting the handgun that he hadn't noticed her enter the living room which was just fine with her.

Marianne was teaching Carl and Beth how to play Hearts when Daryl returned with less than an hour of daylight left. Everyone was happy to see him carrying two rabbits and three squirrels.

"Run into any trouble?" Marianne asked as she took the rabbits from her brother, appreciating their weight.

"Nah, just animals," he said. Marianne was relieved. After convincing Rick they should stay she didn't want to be proven wrong so soon. She knew they'd eventually leave but she hoped to put that off as long as possible. Winter wasn't going anywhere for awhile and it would only get colder in the next couple of months.

Marianne joined Daryl on the back porch, handing him one of the rabbits while keeping the other and began to skin it. "These rabbits are so fat I don't think Carol's gonna have to make that watered down vegetable soup tonight. We don't have that many cans left." Worry stabbed at her heart making her pause. "Hershel said I don't need bandages anymore. Maybe I can start huntin' now." She expertly pulled the skin off of her rabbit.

Daryl looked over at her, tossing aside his rabbit's skin. "You sure that's a good idea? You ain't completely healed yet."

"Good enough. I don't think there's a choice. We need more food."

"We can fish tomorrow mornin'," Daryl suggested. "Bass fishin' should be good around here."

"Sure you remember how? Last time we did was, what, six years ago and Merle got so drunk he fell into the water and scared the fish away." Marianne scowled at the memory but the corner of Daryl's mouth lifted. Marianne wondered how Merle was faring without drugs and alcohol, assuming that he was still alive.

Daryl carefully pulled out his rabbit's intestines. "I remember just fine. We'll leave before dawn."

* * *

 **A/N: If the ending seems a little cut off it's because it is. This chapter was supposed to be longer but I cut it short since I wanted to get it posted so the ending will just be next chapter's beginning.**

 **I wish everyone a great rest of the week. And good luck to anyone who had finals already or who still have them coming up.**

 **Any thoughts? Reactions?**


	26. Chapter 26

**A/N: Thank you for the follows and the favorites.**

 **Thank you to brandibuckeye, SeverusSnape'sLove, Anonymous Howler, and x NikiSt x for the reviews. They're really appreciated.**

 **This is a monster of a chapter compared to the other ones. It's 15,489 words long and to put that into perspective, if you average all of my other chapters together it comes out to about 3,500 words.**

 **I apologize to anyone who doesn't like long chapters. Personally, I sometimes find them annoying but I didn't want to break this one up.**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

 **Chapter Twenty-six**

The water was cold and it was only the promise of a good meal that kept him standing in it up to his mid-thigh. The rising sun peeked through the trees and the morning light glinted off of the river.

Daryl and Marianne were standing far enough apart to keep their lines from tangling. Marianne looked ridiculous in the oversized waders they had found in the shed. Both siblings had poked fun at one another but they didn't take them off, caring more about staying dry than what they looked like.

They had been fishing for a little over half an hour with nothing to show for it but Daryl wasn't worried yet. Fishing took patience and he had plenty of it that morning.

A sudden chill ran up his body and a memory surfaced in his mind. He had taught Marianne how to swim in cold water. The public pool had been closed because of torrential rain but when the weather let up he clipped right through the fence and both of them slipped through. Marianne first and Daryl right behind. Back then he had always been right behind or right ahead, never far out of reach.

The pool had been cold. The Georgia sun hadn't been out in over a day and the rain was near freezing. He could clearly see the goosebumps that ran up and down her arms and legs but that hadn't stopped Marianne from plunging into the water.

"Any more bad dreams?" Daryl asked, breaking the companionable silence between them.

"Not that I can remember." Marianne reeled her line in fast and then let it settle. She hadn't had an episode in over two weeks and Daryl didn't know why. He was still waiting for her to confide in him, dismissing the idea that she would never tell him. It was only a matter of time.

"I think I got somethin'," Marianne said and Daryl looked at her line. He could see the tension and the line being pulled. Marianne took her time, letting the fish drag the line before she started reeling it in.

A good-sized bass appeared out of the water. It dangled in midair before Daryl caught it in the net they had brought with them. Marianne unhooked the struggling fish. Keeping it in the net, Daryl placed it on top of the cooler. While Marianne held it down to keep it from flopping onto the ground, Daryl took his knife and pierced the fish's brain. It stopped moving and Marianne opened the cooler, which they had filled with cold river water since they didn't have ice, so Daryl could put it in.

He thought about their future meal of bass and his stomach squeezed with hunger. There hadn't been any breakfast that morning after Maggie revealed the state of their food supply. Only Lori and Carl ate a granola bar each and Daryl had seen the guilt plainly on their faces.

Not long after, Daryl hooked one and reeled it in. They did the same thing, roles reversed. The morning continued, the calm disrupted only when one of them caught another fish.

* * *

Marianne had trouble keeping up with Daryl's pace. Each of them held a handle of the cooler that contained easily over fifty pounds of fish and had the waders precariously draped over it. Marianne carried the tackle box in her left hand, thankful that they decided to take the small one, and Daryl had the fishing poles and net in his right.

She hadn't felt her lack of sleep this keenly until the moment they started back to the house. They were walking uphill which made the trek harder for her. Cold sweat gathered on her brow. Not being able to wipe it away, she hoped Daryl wouldn't notice.

At least the fishing had brought a small piece of happiness, just enough to keep her remembering what it felt like. She got as close as she ever would of forgetting the shit world they lived in because, as a rule, she never forgot. The whole time she had kept her ears open for any unusual sounds coming from the forest behind them and kept an eye out for movement among the trees across the river.

She was thankful when they finally reached the house and they could set down the cooler just as her right shoulder was starting to ache. Carol, who was on watch, had seen them coming and alerted the group to their arrival. Almost everyone came out to meet them. Only Glenn and Maggie were missing and from the sound of an axe hitting wood Marianne guessed where those two were.

"Any luck?" Hershel asked, motioning towards the cooler. Everyone looked expectantly at them.

"We'll eat," Daryl said. He didn't elaborate any further and Marianne wasn't inclined to either. They'd see soon enough.

Rick stepped forward and Marianne grabbed the waders before backing away in the direction of the shed. She was going to put away the tackle box and hang the waders up to dry. She turned around just as Rick was bending over to open the cooler.

"They stink," Carl said with distaste in his voice. He wasn't wrong. The smell had quickly reached Marianne. Without ice, they needed to prep and cook the bass as soon as possible.

After she found a place to hang the waders and put the tackle box back where they'd found it, Marianne poked around the shed. Whoever owned this house knew a lot about fishing and she didn't doubt that they ate what they caught. She knew the fish knives were probably in the kitchen but it couldn't hurt to look around.

Having no luck in her search, she went outside. Earlier they had found a place at the side of the shed not visible from the house where the fish could be cleaned. There was a sturdy wooden table, the top of it darker in spots where blood had stained it. It stood on a concrete slab with a lean-to roof overhead that jutted out past the longest side of the concrete. There was also a small freezer to the left of the table that was useless to them.

She found T-Dog and Daryl there, placing the cooler on top of the freezer. The knives were already laid out on the table.

Marianne sighed. It wasn't that she was averse to working but her head was beginning to hurt, she was exhausted, and the smell of raw fish was making her stomach turn.

Daryl took one look at her and shook his head. "Go rest. You look like you're gonna keel over."

Marianne simply nodded, too tired to argue that she could keep going. A flash of surprise crossed Daryl's face. He had clearly been expecting a fight.

She stopped herself from trudging into the house, not wanting to advertise her exhaustion to people who would just bug her about it because they were worried, which was still a novelty to her.

Marianne kept a normal pace until she was able to collapse onto one of the couches. She leaned her head back and stared at the ceiling where wooden beams had been added to, presumably, make the place feel more rustic.

The wood looked like a type of oak but she couldn't be sure. Marianne focused on the wood grain, tracing patterns with her eyes and slowly hypnotizing herself. Her eyelids were getting heavier and each time she blinked it took her longer to open them. Without realizing it, she drifted off to sleep.

Marianne jerked awake, disoriented for a moment before she came to the conclusion that she must have fallen asleep. She was no longer sitting up, but stretched out on the couch with blankets on top of her and her head on a pillow. She sat up and pushed the blankets off of her. From the amount of sunlight coming through the windows she guessed it was evening.

The smell of cooked fish hung in the air, making her stomach rumble. She turned around and looked towards the dining room. The whole group, minus Daryl and Rick, was sitting at the table, some of them using camper chairs she had seen in the shed earlier.

"Hey there Sleeping Beauty," T-Dog said.

"If you value your life, you'll never call me that again." Her voice came out raspy. She really needed a drink of water and she really needed to eat.

Marianne stood up and began walking to the dining room.

"I hope we didn't wake you up. We were all tryin' to be quiet," Maggie said.

Marianne shook her head. "How long was I asleep?" She asked the room.

"About six hours," Hershel said.

"What? Y'all should've got me up." There were always chores to be done and now she definitely wouldn't be falling asleep tonight.

"We all thought you needed the rest. And you did," Hershel said. Marianne sighed. She couldn't argue with that but that didn't mean she had to be happy about it.

"Here, let me fix you a plate," Carol stood up and headed to the kitchen before Marianne could protest. Instead of going after Carol, Marianne walked around the table and took the empty seat between Carl and T-Dog. Almost everyone's plates only had a little bit of fish left on them and some were empty. Marianne had woken up at the tail end of their dinner.

Carol soon arrived out of the kitchen and placed a plate, a knife, and a fork in front of Marianne. Marianne stared at the plate, not making a move to begin eating. The right corner of her mouth lifted a little. There were three days worth of their current food rations on her plate, entirely consisting of fish.

"This is mine?" She knew the fish wouldn't keep more than a day so of course she knew they'd all be eating well but for some reason she hadn't pictured it would be so much, even though she had seen firsthand how much fish they had caught.

There were chuckles around the table that Marianne ignored.

"We're all on our seconds," Glenn said.

"All of y'all are gonna get sick," Marianne said as she picked up her knife and fork. Their stomachs had become unaccustomed to such bounty but after Marianne took her first bite, she was planning to eat her fill and then some.

* * *

Marianne was up early again the next day, having had little asleep aside from her six hour nap. The previous night Daryl had told her he was going hunting and she invited herself along, digging her heels in when Daryl said she should wait at least another week. The sheer need to be out in the woods again by far outweighed any misgivings she had about hurting herself.

No one else stirred as Marianne gingerly stepped around sleeping bodies. She guessed that their full stomachs had contented them into a deep, restful sleep.

If only it was that easy for her. The image of Julia's dead body and then walker Jimmy came to the forefront. She pushed them back down, refusing to let her mind wander into darker territory and ruin the day for her.

Marianne went to her bag and grabbed a pair of jeans, a jacket, and her boots. She went into one of the bedrooms to change. After that she retrieved her bow and made sure all of her knives were in their rightful place. Lastly, she grabbed a granola bar that was allocated to her and Daryl last night. Splitting it in half gave them one maybe two bites of food and they might have been better off not eating anything at all since the granola bar might make them hungrier.

Because he had the last watch of the night, Daryl was already awake. She found him on the front porch, ready to leave.

"Morning," she said as she gently closed the front door.

"No 'good' morning?"

"What's so good about leaving a warm bed to come freeze my ass off outside for who knows how long?" Actually, Marianne was eager to hunt again and leaving a warm bed didn't bother her at all.

"There's still time to go back to bed."

"Nice try. Nothing's stoppin' me from goin'." Except for a herd of walkers. God forbid they should come across one. The group really needed a break from running while they had the chance. After they left, an opportunity to catch their breath might not come for awhile.

"That doesn't mean I have to like it." Daryl said with a frown but it looked like he had no intention of arguing with her to stay. "I'll go get Glenn up so we can leave." Glenn had graciously volunteered to get up early to finish the rest of Daryl's watch, citing that he'd rather have a good meal over an hour of sleep.

Daryl soon came back but it was a couple of minutes before Glenn appeared, stifling a yawn. Even with his cap on she could tell that he had bed head. His 'Good morning' was interrupted by another yawn.

"You sleep good?" Marianne asked.

"Definitely. It's great not going to bed hungry," Glenn said.

"Let's hope it happens tonight too," Marianne said.

"Come on, we gotta leave," Daryl said with impatience.

Marianne turned to Daryl. "We head east, right?"

"Southeast a bit and then east," Daryl said. Marianne nodded. They were heading away from the river and then roughly following its path and when they were done they'd circle back but closer to the river, possibly within sight of it.

"Good luck," Glenn said as the both of them began to walk away.

"Don't need it," Daryl said gruffly over his shoulder.

"Thank you Glenn," Marianne said pointedly, giving her brother a look.

Except for the occasional bird and gust of wind blowing through the trees, the forest was quiet. Marianne felt a calm wash over her that hadn't in a long time. This was as relaxed as she was capable of and she enjoyed every second of it.

Daryl and Marianne walked side by side about eight feet apart. Her eyes roamed around as they carefully made their way deeper into the woods, looking for any sign of potential prey.

The tree branches swayed a little in the wind that she wanted to go away because it made her colder but it only strengthened, making her wish she had some gloves on her but the ones they had were so thick they interfered with her drawing her bowstring.

No more than fifteen minutes later she heard a faint rustling close to the ground to her right. Marianne eyed the area where the sound came from. She spotted a brown rabbit and readied her arrow. Daryl looked in the direction she had pointed her arrow but didn't aim his crossbow which Marianne was grateful for. It showed that he still had confidence in her hunting abilities.

Marianne strained a little to pull her bowstring, her muscles weakened from disuse. She wondered if she could regain her strength with her paltry diet. This thought dampened the exhilaration she felt by being back on the hunt. She released the arrow and made the first kill of the day. At least her aim was still true.

Daryl retrieved the unlucky rabbit and if he had noticed the extra effort it had taken her, which she was sure he had, he didn't say anything about it.

"I'll carry it," he said while stringing up the rabbit.

"It's my kill. I'll carry it."

"You're tiny, it'll just get in the way," he said in an infuriating tone of finality. He'd never had a problem before with her carrying animals.

Marianne glared at him. She didn't feel like fighting right then. Maybe later. "Fine. Let's get goin'."

Roughly six hours passed with only one brief break when they each ate their half of the granola bar. They had caught almost enough squirrels to feed everyone but no more rabbits had appeared and most of the squirrels seemed to be driven into their nests by the cold.

All of a sudden both siblings stopped in their tracks.

"You see what I see?" Marianne asked.

Daryl nodded and without having to say anything, a plan formed. Both of them started walking again but more cautiously than before. They couldn't risk a single snap of a twig. Marianne was in the lead and Daryl close behind with his crossbow raised and ready to fire.

They stopped about twelve feet away from the tree line of an area where the forest was cleared and stared at a house. It was smaller than the one they were staying in but not by much. They had a full view of the back of the house and the backyard. There was a sturdy, wooden shed off to their left, not as big as the one they had at their house.

"What're you thinkin'?" Daryl asked.

"It looks deserted," Marianne said.

"We'll wait. See if anyone's around."

Marianne agreed so they moved closer and crouched down while still in the woods, obscured by the undergrowth, and watched for signs of life. About half an hour passed before either of them spoke.

"I don't think someone's livin' here," Marianne said.

"They could be out scavengin' or huntin' like us." Daryl stood up and Marianne copied him.

"But it feels empty." There were no signs of life and the place looked abandoned. Like most of the world, this house was dead.

"No offense, but we're not makin' a decision based on your feelings," Daryl said, glancing over at her and then back at the house.

"I wouldn't expect you to Daryl but we can't stand around here all day. We either go in or leave and I say we go in."

Daryl stared at the house. She could tell he was deep in thought, probably going over everything that could go wrong, everything that could go right, and weighing them against each other.

"Let's do it," he finally said.

Marianne gave him a look of approval and then hoped to herself that this wouldn't be a mistake. If it was, it'd be her fault.

The two of them quickly crossed the backyard because there wasn't any cover. Marianne soon discovered that the back door was locked.

"I guess it's the front then," she said.

"If that's locked, we'll check the windows."

They skirted around the house, staying close to the wall. Daryl walked sideways to keep an eye out on what was behind and to the side of them while Marianne focused on what was ahead of them.

Both of them stopped as they started to round the corner. There was an SUV in the driveway and they retreated. A car could mean people and people could mean trouble.

"I don't like this," Daryl said in a low voice. "Somethin' ain't right."

"What's that I hear? You _feel_ something ain't right. Hmm, what was it that you said a couple of minutes ago?" Marianne asked, failing to hide a smirk.

"Fine. We'll go in," Daryl said, not looking particularly happy about it.

They went around the corner again, still hugging the wall. When they reached the front door, Marianne checked the handle.

"It's unlocked," she said right before knocking on the door. They waited but nothing came and they both took position. Marianne would open the door and Daryl would be the first one in, ready to defend them if needed.

Marianne swiftly opened the door and Daryl stepped into the doorway. She readied her bow and stood behind him. Daryl looked back and forth a few times.

"It's clear," he said. Daryl walked further into the house and Marianne followed. With the curtains open there was plenty of light to see by.

From the front room, where they were standing in the middle of, they could see straight through the dining room and into the kitchen. No doors separated the rooms. There was a large fireplace to their left and a closed door on either side. To their right was what appeared to be an L-shaped hallway and with a quick inspection they discovered all the doors there were also closed.

"Good, we don't have'ta deal with the other rooms. Just go straight to the kitchen and see what's there," Daryl said.

They walked into the dining room and her eyes were drawn to the giant chandelier hanging over the dining room table made out of antlers. She wondered if they were real and if they were, she hoped that the bucks hadn't been killed just for their antlers.

Marianne entered the kitchen first and then Daryl. There were three doors, one on the left wall close to the refrigerator, one on the other side of the room on the back wall which led outside, and another on the right wall.

Daryl placed the dead animals he was carrying on the island counter and Marianne placed the few squirrels Daryl had eventually let her carry on there too.

"I think that's the pantry." She pointed to the door on the left and that's the first one they headed to.

They did the same routine they had at the front door. Marianne opened the door while Daryl was ready for an attack.

Because it was obvious nothing and nobody was there, Marianne opened the door wider so she could look inside. "Holy shit."

The pantry was a walk-in with shelves that covered all three walls top to bottom. The shelves weren't completely full but there was enough food in front of her to make her breath hitch and her heart pound. A smile tugged at her lips and she looked at Daryl who was already looking at her. Although other people wouldn't see it, she could tell that he was happy.

"This is what? Enough to feed us two meals a day for three weeks, five if we stretch it," Marianne said.

"Sounds about right. We'll need to come back for it, bring a few more people."

Marianne nodded. "Search the cabinets and I'll do the closet."

"What makes you so sure it's a closet?"

"The same reason I knew that this was a pantry," Marianne said. Daryl snorted and Marianne raised an eyebrow at him.

"That was a serious answer?" He asked.

"Very serious." Her sincere tone was ruined by a smile and Daryl shook his head.

"Alright, just be careful."

"Can do," Marianne said. Daryl started opening cabinets and Marianne went to the other side of the room where the mystery door was. She knocked on it more out of habit then thinking she actually needed to do it. There was no bumping or thumping so she opened the door to be faced with an ordinary closet.

Jackets and raincoats crowded the space. She pushed them to the right and found a gun rack that could hold five hunting rifles but there was only one. She looked up and zeroed in on the shoebox on the shelf at the top of the closet, having to stand on her tiptoes to take it down. She opened the lid and as she had suspected, there were two boxes of ammo. One of the boxes was labeled .30-60 Springfield—bullets for the rifle— and the other was a box of 9mm bullets for a handgun. Marianne hadn't found one yet and wondered where it could be.

She set the shoebox on the ground and decided to search the bottom of the closet. At the front was a row of boots and rainboots but behind them was enough space to store additional things.

"Yes," she couldn't help but whisper when she spotted a compound bow on the floor behind the rainboots. It wasn't the greatest way to store a bow but when she picked it up she saw it was still in good shape. The bow had an attached quiver that could hold four arrows. After poking around a little more, she found six arrows in a separate quiver leaning upright in the back left corner of the closet.

"What do ya think?" Marianne had grabbed the rifle and bow and was showing them off to Daryl.

"Better than what I got."

"What'd you find?"

"Spices." Daryl said the word with contempt, making Marianne laugh.

"Well, it'll help morale."

"My morale don't need help."

She laughed again and Daryl unsuccessfully tried to look annoyed at her. "Of course it doesn't. But I'm sure everyone else will appreciate it."

Marianne continued her search. She had to jump to see the back of the shelf and her effort was rewarded. She found a hunting backpack that was designed to carry a bow and she put the newly found one in place. The backpack didn't carry a whole lot but they stuffed as much food as they could in it while leaving space for the two boxes of ammo.

The hunting rifle had a strap attached to it so Daryl slung it across his back. She put on the backpack before Daryl could get ahold of it.

"You sure that ain't too heavy?"

"What's with you lately? You're actin' like I can't do anything."

Instead of giving her a real answer, Daryl shrugged. Marianne let him get away with it for now but if he kept treating her like this she'd have to have a talk with him.

She began to reach for the squirrels she had been carrying but Daryl grabbed them and Marianne huffed after he flashed a smirk her way.

Before they left, Marianne gathered two long pieces of grass. They unlocked the back door, opened it, and when they closed it they made it so one of the pieces of grass was stuck in the closed door. If the grass was gone or had fallen to the ground they'd know that someone had opened the door. They locked the back door and did the same for the front. They didn't find the keys so they had to leave that door unlocked.

After that, they checked the shed. It contained a generator and full gas containers. A generator meant central heating and working appliances. No more huddling around the fireplace or cooking over a fire.

"You think we could move here?" Marianne asked.

"Nah, we don't know where that road goes and it'll take too much gas drivin' around tryin' to find a way here."

That was the answer she had expected. "Yeah, I figured and walkin' it is out of the question. It's too risky and we don't have a local map."

It wasn't the outcome she wanted but at least they had found more food and weapons.

Hours and a few more squirrels later they arrived back at the house which they came up to from behind. No one was currently in the backyard and whoever was on watch was on the front porch. The back door was locked so they had to knock. Marianne saw the curtain of the window to her left twitch a little before she heard the lock click.

The door opened and Rick was standing in front of them. Marianne's face settled into a look of displeasure. Rick quickly looked over them both, taking in the dead animals approvingly and then he noticed the rifle Daryl was carrying and the backpack Marianne was wearing. She could practically see the questions running through his head.

"Good to have you back." Rick nodded at them. Daryl shrugged a shoulder and Marianne didn't respond at all. "It looks like we have something to talk about."

Daryl nodded and opened his mouth to speak but Marianne beat him to it. "We need to start on dinner. These squirrels won't gut themselves."

The annoyance that crossed Rick's face gave her some satisfaction. She knew the rabbit and squirrels could wait long enough to give Rick a quick summary of what they found but making him wait was so much more fun.

"I think it's time I learned how to gut them myself. You can talk while I get the hang of it," Rick said. Marianne looked at him critically. This time she was the one that was annoyed but she could still grudgingly appreciate his maneuver.

A few minutes later the three of them were standing at the table where Daryl and T-Dog had prepared the fish. Daryl stood in the middle with Marianne to his right and Rick to his left.

By the time Daryl had finished showing Rick the finer points of skinning and gutting a squirrel, Marianne had already finished the rabbit and was pulling the skin off of one of their bigger squirrels. Marianne had tossed the smallest one at Rick for him to practice on. If he botched it, the least amount of meat would be ruined.

Daryl told Rick about the house. Rick asked questions that only Daryl answered.

"We need more than me and Marianne to go back for the rest."

Rick sliced open his second squirrel. "We can do that tomorrow. The sooner, the better."

After dinner Rick called a group meeting about the house and it was decided that Marianne, Daryl, T-Dog, Glenn, and Maggie would go to the house for the food.

Marianne could tell Rick wasn't happy about staying behind but it was argued that he always went on supply runs so it was time for him to sit one out. She was completely fine with it, having not looked forward to hours on end of being unable to avoid him.

* * *

It was another fitful night where the hours seemed to drag on. Marianne knew she dozed a little because one second the fire in the fireplace was going strong and the next it had died down with only a few weak flames left. Whoever was on watch had forgotten to add more wood to keep it alive.

She extricated herself from the middle of the sleeping group. Glenn stirred a little as she stepped over him and she had to walk around everyone to get to the fireplace where she carefully added wood so as not to wake anyone. She watched the fire grow and satisfied that it wouldn't burn out, Marianne went to her things, pulled on her boots and put on her jacket. Marianne made sure her knives were in place before she headed outside, taking her bow with her as an added precaution.

She found T-Dog on the front porch looking bored but diligently watching for any sign of trouble. Looking surprised, he had turned towards her when he heard the door open.

T-Dog looked at the wristwatch they passed around so whoever was on watch would know when their shift was over. "You're up early."

"Couldn't get back to sleep. The fire was dyin'. I put some wood on and since I was already up I thought you'd want some company."

T-Dog grimaced. "I knew I forgot something."

Marianne stood next to him. "You'll remember next time."

A silence stretched between them. Marianne didn't have a clue about what to say. They were practically around each other 24/7 so it wasn't like they didn't know what the other had been doing.

"What's it like out there?" T-Dog gestured towards the woods.

Marianne thought about it for a few seconds. She didn't want to describe what it was like for her, what it meant. It was too personal. "Quiet."

T-Dog stifled a chuckle. "Glenn's right. You're terrible at answering questions."

"I'm not Google."

T-Dog looked taken aback and tried to hide it but Marianne caught on.

"Just because I didn't own a computer doesn't mean I don't know how to use one. I wasn't livin' under a rock."

"Sorry." T-Dog looked a little sheepish. "I just never thought about you and Daryl like that. You two seemed..." He was at a loss for words.

"Clueless?" Marianne finished for him. T-Dog looked distressed, like he had dug himself into a hole and didn't know how to get out.

"No. Not that. You—"

"To be fair, Daryl is clueless. He never saw the point in it. Never needed it."

The door opened and the two of them turned to see who it was. Glenn was standing there, immensely relieved. It looked like he had just rolled out of bed. He didn't even have shoes on.

"Oh, thank God," Glenn said.

"What's wrong?" Marianne and T-Dog asked at the same time.

"You were gone," Glenn said to Marianne. "I thought you were...you know."

She was grateful it was still dark enough that the two men couldn't see her face flush. She was rarely embarrassed and she felt guilty for scaring Glenn. "I couldn't sleep."

Glenn nodded. "I'm glad you're okay."

Marianne's heart twisted a little. She was still struggling to get used to people caring about her. It was hard to stop being wary and open herself up. She didn't see this ending anytime soon. "You have a couple of hours. Maybe you can get back to sleep?"

"I don't know but it's worth a try."

Glenn ended up falling back asleep and even slept in a little with the help of Marianne, who stopped several people from waking him up. Glenn's extra sleep didn't delay their trip. Everyone was ready at the time Daryl had appointed.

All of them had backpacks on. Glenn, Maggie, and T-Dog each had a bag hanging from one of their shoulders. T-Dog and Glenn were carrying small duffels in their left hands. Without a second or third bag, Marianne and Daryl were left unencumbered to use their bow and crossbow.

This trip through the forest was less peaceful than yesterday. There were more people to worry about and look out for. They were less inconspicuous than when it was just her and Daryl. Along with walkers and strangers, Marianne kept a look out for squirrels and rabbits but the group was making enough noise to warn them away.

Because hunting wasn't their purpose, they got to the house in half the time Daryl and Marianne had the previous day.

Daryl was in the lead and Marianne took the rear. He stopped them all at the tree line. Everything appeared to be as they had left it. Even so, Daryl and Marianne examined the scene in front of them thoroughly before they both agreed it was safe to proceed and they crossed the backyard.

"Wait a second," Daryl said. He checked if the backdoor was still locked and looked for the piece of grass they had shut in it. "It's there," he said to Marianne.

"What's there?" Glenn asked

"Our security system," Marianne said which, from the look on Glenn's face, was too vague of an answer for him.

The five of them continued around the house and reached the front door. Marianne checked if the other piece of grass was still there and it was.

"We should be good," Marianne said.

They were still cautious. T-Dog, Glenn, and Maggie stood back a little. Glenn was turned away from them so he could keep watch. Marianne opened the door and Daryl went in first.

"It's clear," he said.

He went further into the house and the rest of them followed, T-Dog shutting the door behind them. Marianne heard the lock click and turned around.

T-Dog shrugged. "It couldn't hurt, right?"

"Just remember it's locked in case we need to make a run for it," Marianne said.

They all went into the kitchen and put their bags on the counters. It was time to get down to business.

"Glenn, Maggie. You're with me. We'll take the hallway," Marianne said.

Daryl nodded. "Me and T-Dog'll start with those two doors and then join you."

"No, you should start packin'. We want'ta get back as soon as we can." Marianne wondered if Daryl would be stubborn and refuse.

For a few seconds, it looked like he would disagree. "Alright."

"Sounds like a plan," Maggie said.

"Yeah, sounds good," Glenn added

"Let's do this," T-Dog said, prompting them to get moving.

Marianne grabbed one of the small duffel bags for any toiletries and, hopefully, medical supplies they found.

In the first stretch of the hallway was two doors to their left. The first door was to a small bathroom where they took a small first aid kit, a bottle of shampoo, a tube of toothpaste, and two rolls of toilet paper. The second led to a boy's room where there was nothing of note except a small stack of comic books Marianne placed flat at the bottom of the duffel because Carl might like them.

Immediately turning around the corner, there was a door to their right and two more after it. At the very end of the hallway was a fourth door.

It was Marianne's turn to enter the room first. She stood to the side of the door with Maggie next to her placing a hand on the door handle. Marianne tensed at a smell she hadn't noticed before, the smell of something rotten.

"You smell that?" Marianne asked.

"Yeah, you think one's in there?" Maggie asked.

"Only one way to find out." Marianne knocked on the door but no noise answered. She nodded her head at Maggie who quickly opened the door. Marianne stepped in with a knife raised but there weren't any walkers. There was a king size bed opposite the door with a window on either side of it. A closet door was to her left and next to it was what she assumed was a bathroom door. There was a dresser and an armchair. It was an ordinary bedroom. All except for the four dead people.

Maggie stepped up behind her and made a little gasp.

"What is it?" Glenn asked. Marianne went further into the room so Glenn could see. He didn't make a sound.

There was a woman lying in the middle of the bed, in between a young boy and a teenage girl. A man was slumped in the armchair that had blood splattered on the wall behind it. All of them had been shot in the head.

The man's right arm was hanging over an armrest with the handgun that Marianne had failed to find yesterday on the carpet below it. It was a sobering sight and, for a minute, the trio stood in silence.

"They didn't even try," she said with disapproval. Marianne was getting angry that she was mad at these strangers.

"You don't know that. Maybe they did," Glenn said.

"They have a generator, gas, food, weapons." She shook her head. "They didn't give themselves a chance."

It wasn't like she hadn't thought about her death many times, it just never occurred to her that dying by her own hand because she had given up was an option. So many people were fighting tooth and nail for their lives and they had thrown theirs away.

She tried to look at it from their perspective but couldn't wrap her mind around it. Life had always been hard but now it was hard for different reasons. Maybe some people who had it easier than her couldn't face the new reality. Their will to survive was never tested and when it had been, it was found lacking.

"We don't know their story," Maggie said.

"No, we don't." But Marianne knew that they had given up like that CDC doctor who tried to blow them up and 'save' them from the walkers. That felt like it had happened years ago and she couldn't even remember his name anymore but why should she? He meant nothing to her. Like these people. Absolutely nothing. But then why had she reacted this way? Marianne bit her bottom lip and took a deep breath, which she instantly regretted because the smell of decaying bodies was strong. Marianne grabbed the gun off of the floor. "Come on. Let's get this over with."

They hit the jackpot in the bathroom. The medicine cabinet was actually filled with medicine. The cabinet under the sink had more toilet paper and tampons. The duffel bag was nearly full when they moved on.

The three of them made quick work of the remaining rooms. The next door was a linen closet and the one after that was a teenage girl's bedroom where Marianne grabbed all of the hair ties since they always seemed to be losing or breaking them. The door at the end was what looked to be a guest bedroom with an attached bathroom, which had nothing in it.

Finished with all of the rooms, they went back to the kitchen to find that T-Dog and Daryl had just finished packing all of the backpacks.

"How's it goin'?" Marianne asked. Daryl, who was in the pantry, grunted.

"It's like Tetris, tryin' to get everything to fit," T-Dog said with a grin that went away when he looked over at Glenn, Maggie, and Marianne. "What happened?"

T-Dog's question instantly pulled Daryl out of the pantry to look at Marianne. If T-Dog could see that something was wrong than Daryl definitely would. Maggie, Glenn, and Marianne looked at each other and none of them spoke.

"Marianne?" Daryl asked.

She sighed. "We found the people that lived here."

"Were they walkers?" T-Dog asked. "We didn't hear anything."

"No. They're dead dead," Glenn said.

"It was a murder-suicide," Maggie added somberly. "A mother, a father, and two kids."

"Head shots." Marianne grabbed the handgun from the back of her pants. "I found it."

She didn't like how intently Daryl was looking at her so she went to what she thought was the right cabinet and opened it. She looked at the shelves and estimated there was enough room in the small duffel bag for the spices. If it wasn't for their gruesome discovery, Marianne would've smiled at the sight of them.

The five of them made quick work packing up the rest of the food. Everything didn't fit perfectly but at least it all fit.

It was decided that Daryl and Marianne would each take one of the small duffels that T-Dog and Glenn had carried there. She was adjusting the strap and about to start following the rest of them out of the house when Daryl held her back until the others were out of earshot.

"You okay?" He asked.

"I've seen worse." She had lived through worse.

"Marianne."

"I'm fine." She shrugged off Daryl and moved to catch up with Maggie, Glenn, and T-Dog.

The trip back was unremarkable and according to the watch T-Dog was wearing it was 3:37 PM when they returned. Marianne was tired and hungry and she could tell the others were too.

She was disappointed but not surprised that lunch wasn't waiting for them. The group was sticking to their normal routine of two meals a day and she'd have to hold out until dinner.

The five of them dumped the bags in the dining room for Beth, Carol, and Hershel to sort through. Relieved of their burden, T-Dog went to take over watch for Rick, and Glenn and Maggie sat on the back porch together. Despite the already long day Daryl started chopping more firewood and Marianne went down to the river for more water.

After filling the two containers she brought with her Marianne stayed be the river for awhile, watching the water rush past her and holding herself back from sticking her feet in the cold river. The temporary solitude felt good but only because she knew it was temporary.

She didn't stay long because she didn't want to worry the others, more specifically Daryl. When the back of the house came into view she saw that Glenn was gone and Carl was sitting on the porch floor reading a comic book.

Marianne didn't know why Maggie was still outside with Glenn gone, knowing the two only withstood the cold to have a little bit of privacy, and she was surprised that Lori had let Carl read outside.

Maggie spotted her, got off the porch and walked towards Marianne.

"Here, let me help." Maggie reached for one of the containers and Marianne let her take it. "I feel kinda guilty. You go off to get water while I sit on the porch. Glenn did too and now he's helpin' Daryl."

Marianne shrugged. "You're not used to walkin' around the woods for hours on end. You needed a break."

Maggie smiled and shook her head. "You don't have to make excuses for me. You need a break just as much as I do."

The two women went up the porch steps and set the containers next to the back door. Both of them sat on the porch swing. Marianne sat crossed legged while Maggie tucked one leg underneath her and let the other hang so her foot touched the floor, letting her to gently swing them.

Marianne gave a cursory glance when Lori came outside and told Carl it was time to go back inside.

"Maggie, I've been thinkin'. Since we've got an extra bow, maybe you'd like to learn how to shoot?"

Maggie looked at her in such a way that Marianne was regretting she had asked.

"When can we start?" Maggie asked enthusiastically.

Marianne gave her a half smile. "Tomorrow afternoon, after me and Daryl get back from fishing."

"I want to go fishing," Carl said. Marianne looked over at the boy, who had obviously been eavesdropping. His eyes were lit up at the prospect and eagerness filled his voice. It occurred then to Marianne that it must be pretty dull stuck at the house all the time with only chores, cards, and board games to keep him occupied. At least the comic books would help a little.

Marianne glanced at Lori to gauge the woman's reaction. She looked disagreeable to the idea but Marianne didn't see why Carl couldn't go. Between her and Daryl, he'd be safe.

"Sure. But you're gonna have to ask your Mom or Dad," Marianne told Carl, glancing back over at Lori. The boy looked a little crestfallen, probably already knowing what Lori would say. Instead of turning to his mom, Carl headed inside where he could find Rick.

Marianne didn't look at Lori to see how she reacted to Carl's choice of going to Rick instead of her. She didn't want to be involved in the Grimes' messed up family dynamic and despite how much she didn't dislike Lori, Marianne didn't want to be her confidant. It'd only make her uncomfortable and she wouldn't be good at it.

Maggie and Marianne followed Lori into the house. Maggie went to the dining room and Marianne grabbed one of her shirts and her small sewing kit. She settled down on an armchair next to the fire.

Rick and Carl came into the living room. Rick looked around. Maggie and Beth were in the dining room organizing their new food. Carol was cooking and Marianne was sewing a button back onto her shirt. Marianne knew he wouldn't want to have a conversation that would most likely turn into an argument in front of other people and she was right. Rick led Lori and Carl to the den.

Carl hadn't completely closed the door and from where Marianne was sitting and Carol's place by the fire, both of them were able to hear what Rick and Lori were saying. The two women looked at each other and neither of them moved. Carol had a better excuse since she couldn't leave the soup or it would burn. Marianne's feeble excuse was that she didn't want to give up the warmth of the fire for the sake of Rick and Lori's privacy.

"I don't want Carl going out there," Lori said.

"Lori, it's not like he'll be goin' by himself." Rick's voice had a hint of exasperation.

"I don't care." Lori sounded determined. "I know there haven't been walkers yet but you know how fast that can change. Think about the farm."

"Mom, please. It's not that far away," Carl said, his voice almost matching Rick's.

"Carl, honey, it's not safe."

"But almost everyone else got to leave." Marianne thought Carl was speaking to his mom with a little too much attitude.

"That's different and you aren't 'everyone else'," Lori said.

"Lori, I trust Daryl and Marianne with my life and I trust them to keep him safe."

Startled, Marianne looked over at Carol to see how she had reacted to what they just heard. Carol was already looking at her with a small smile on her face. Marianne turned her head away so Carol couldn't get a good look at it.

Rick continued. "Marianne cares about Carl and I think Daryl does too."

Silence came from the room and Marianne could practically feel Lori thinking. She wondered if Lori was as surprised as she was by what Rick had said about Marianne.

There was more talking but Marianne didn't hear what they were saying. She stared at the button she hadn't finished sewing on with unfocused eyes. All of her attention had moved inward as she tried to process Rick's words. How could he say that he trusted her with his life? All she had done since she had reunited with the group was hate him and before that, on the farm, they hadn't really gotten along.

Did she trust Rick with her life? Marianne was confused and she didn't like the feeling.

Carl bounded over to her and interrupted her knotted up thoughts. She hadn't noticed the Grimes leaving the den or heard the end of their conversation. From the look on Carl's face, Lori had relented.

"I can go!" Carl had a big grin that Marianne might have returned if she wasn't still occupied with what Rick had said. She gave a nod instead.

"Glad you can come." She truly was but wasn't sure Daryl would be. He still didn't know that Carl had asked. "You need'ta go to bed early. We'll be up before dawn."

Carl wholeheartedly agreed but it didn't work out that way.

The next morning Marianne was almost finished getting ready when she decided it was time for Carl to get out of bed. She wondered if she should get Lori up to so she could see Carl off. The worried mother had asked her last night why they couldn't go down to the river where they collected their water since it was closer to the house and she answered that the fishing was better where they planned to go.

"It's time to get up," she whispered close to his head, gently shaking his shoulder. Carl groaned.

"Hush, you'll wake 'em all up."

He sat up, his hair sticking up every which way. Lori hadn't cut it recently and it was getting longer. Carl was slow to get going but once he was fully awake he was rushing to leave.

Last night, Daryl wasn't thrilled when she told him Carl was joining them. "We ain't babysitters," he had said. This morning he looked only slightly grumpy at the prospect.

"Turn that frown upside down," she said to Daryl, who looked at her like she was crazy. Since they were outside she didn't hold back her laugh.

"It's too early for that," Daryl grumbled.

"It's never too early to mess with you."

Daryl scoffed. "Whatever." Marianne could tell he wasn't as upset as he was letting on. "Payback's a bitch."

"I'll keep an eye out for her."

In a couple of minutes the trio was ready, having retrieved everything they needed from the shed. They followed the path down to the river that Marianne and Daryl had discovered and used the other day.

Carl was carrying his own pair of waders that was too big for him and a fishing pole taller than him. Had had refused to take one of the fishing poles made for kids. Marianne and Daryl carried everything else.

They hadn't walked very far when Marianne noticed Daryl was itching to go faster. "Hey, you can go on without us."

"You sure?"

"Yeah. Here." They set the cooler down, which they had been carrying between them, and Marianne handed over her waders and fishing pole to Daryl so she could carry the cooler by herself.

"Same place, right?" Marianne asked and Daryl nodded. "We'll meet you there."

Daryl took off at a faster pace and soon disappeared around a bend in the path. Marianne glanced at Carl and saw that he looked a little disappointed. She had noticed before that, despite Daryl's gruff appearance, Carl was fascinated with her brother. It seemed like fishing wasn't the only thing the boy had been looking forward to. Marianne didn't know what to say so she kept silent.

"Do you like it here?" Carl asked.

"It's nice enough." Marianne wondered where Carl was going with this conversation.

"How long are we gonna stay here?"

"As long as we can." Which, if Rick got his way, would only be a few more days.

"Why can't we stay here forever?"

Marianne readjusted the cooler in her hands. "It's not safe enough. There's no fences and no way we can defend this place."

"That's what my Dad told me," Carl said and Marianne frowned. "You don't like him."

"That's the understatement of the year," Marianne said. She probably shouldn't be talking about Rick like this in front of Carl. Whatever Rick was to her, he was a decent father to him, and, for Carl, she didn't want him to have a bad relationship with his dad. "You're lucky. Your Dad is a million times better than mine was. He actually loves you so you gotta try to be nice to him."

"You're not nice to him."

"He's not _my_ Dad."

Carl didn't respond and she assumed the conversation was over.

"I don't like my Mom right now."

Marianne winced. She wasn't a therapist, let alone one for a kid. This was a serious topic and she could royally screw this up. "Why not?"

Carl shrugged. "I don't know."

She grappled with her mind for something to say. Anything that wouldn't make this worse. "Grown-ups make mistakes. Your mom is already payin' for hers so she doesn't need you punishin' her."

Once again, she thought the conversation was over but Carl wasn't finished.

He kicked a rock on the ground as they walked. It rolled a few feet in from of him and he kicked it again. "She treats me like a kid."

"In case you haven't noticed, let me tell you. You are a kid."

"I can take care of myself," he said defensively.

Marianne stopped walking and then Carl did, ending up a few feet in front of her. He turned around to face her. "But you can't Carl. Not yet. You understand?" Carl stared at his shoes and didn't answer. "Look at me. This is serious. You understand? Say it."

"I understand."

"You tellin' the truth?" Carl nodded. "Good. And don't you forget it." Marianne started walking again. "Now perk up. We're gonna catch some fish."

When the two of them reached the fishing spot, Daryl had already cast his line. Marianne showed Carl how to and soon all of them were waiting for a bite.

After a scan of the forest across the river Marianne looked at Carl who kept glancing at Daryl. She knew Carl wanted to talk to Daryl and her brother was oblivious. Marianne was about to speak when there was an unexpectedly strong tug on her pole and the surprise almost made her stumble forward.

"You get somethin'?" Daryl asked.

"Yeah, but I don't think it's a fish."

It was a struggle to reel in. Whatever was caught on her hook was big. Daryl watched with a furrowed brow, looking between her and her line. Carl had lost focus on his pole too and stared expectantly for Marianne's catch to reveal itself.

Marianne's confusion turned into suspicion. Soon, the outline of the thing attached to her hook came into view.

"Is that a log?" Carl asked.

"Carl, get outta the water. Now," Marianne said. She looked over at Daryl and it looked like he too had realized what it was.

"What is—"

"I said now!"

Daryl dropped his pole and moved to pull Carl out of the water because the boy seemed stuck in place, mesmerized by the walker on Marianne's hook.

With Carl safely on dry land, she kept reeling it in, intent on killing it. For some reason, she couldn't let it continue its course down the river. She wanted at least one place where the horror of the walking dead was absent.

The walker was coming feet first towards her. When it got close enough she saw that her hook had caught the back of its pants. Marianne dropped her pole, grabbed the walker, and pulled it halfway out of the water. It violently thrashed making splashes big enough to get her shirt wet. The walker was floating on its stomach and trying to turn around to grab her. She pinned its right arm with her foot, crouched down, and stabbed its head. The walker went limp.

Marianne stood up and looked at the river, finding that her effort was futile. At least a dozen more walkers were floating past them and who knew how many more were stuck in the current underwater.

Marianne stepped out of the river. Daryl and Carl had already taken off their waders and put their boots back on. Marianne copied them as fast as she could.

"There's gotta be more on land and they could be close," Daryl said.

Marianne nodded and quickened her pace. "I think it's time to leave."

Daryl ran ahead to alert the group as soon as possible. Marianne wanted to run too but walked at a speed that Carl could keep up with. She knew that in certain aspects he was mature for his age, but he was still just a kid and she didn't want to unduly worry or panic him. This wouldn't be like the farm.

The group was already packing when the two of them reached the house. Lori was waiting outside for them and when she saw Carl she engulfed him in a hug that the boy protested against. Marianne saw the hurt in Lori's face when Carl pushed her away.

She felt bad for Lori and, apparently, their talk earlier had done little to affect his behavior. "Carl, let's go inside and make sure we don't leave your cards behind."

Marianne avoided looking at Lori as she shepherded Carl into the house, giving the other woman some privacy to compose herself.

The group packed within the hour and after a quick consultation with the map, they were off.

* * *

A few days later they found a relatively isolated three-story hotel. It had grimy off white walls and faded blue trim. The second and third floors had balconies where the railings' green paint was peeling.

Everyone parked haphazardly, completely ignoring the lines of the parking spots. They got out of their cars and stood close together, all facing and checking out the hotel. Marianne looked warily at the four other cars in the parking lot that didn't belong to them.

Rick pointed at them. "We can check those for gas."

"You think there's people in there or just walkers?" Carol asked no one in particular.

"No one's shooting at us so that's a good sign," Marianne said.

"Let's check the doors," Rick said.

The front door and the emergency exits were locked and so was the service door in the back. Breaking one wasn't an option since they wanted the protection of a locked door between them and the world.

"What are we going to do now?" Lori asked with a worried face and a hand on her stomach.

"We'll figure something out," Rick assured everyone. Marianne noticed he hadn't looked at Lori and she saw that Lori had noticed it too and she was trying to mask the hurt on her face.

"We can check the balconies," Glenn said. "I can do it."

Maggie didn't look happy about Glenn's volunteering and some of the group looked skeptical about the idea. Rick didn't. He examined the building, nodding his head. The familiar look of resolve showed on his face.

"He can stand on one of the cars," Rick said.

"I'll do it too. We can split the balconies between me and Glenn," Marianne said.

"Nah, I'll do it." Daryl said.

Marianne narrowed her eyes at him. "No way. I volunteered first."

"Hold on. We haven't even established if two people are goin' to do it," Rick said.

"It'll take forever if it's just Glenn and then we still have the whole place to clear. Don't you want to be settled in before dark?" Marianne looked at everyone except Rick.

"I don't like it, but she's right. And if we can't get in, we'll have to find another place and risk spending the night outside," Hershel said.

"Alright, let's do it," Rick said.

Marianne turned to Daryl and recognized the look on his face. "If you ask me if I'm sure, I will steal your vest and hide it."

"Then what about your stomach?" Daryl asked instead, not missing a beat.

Marianne pursed her lips and crossed her arms. "I'm sayin' this for the last time. It's healed. You don't believe me? I'll show you."

She unzipped her jacket and pulled up the two shirts she was wearing to prove that her injury was gone. Small patches of skin were still pink and there was some scarring that Hershel said should fade with time but no one could deny that she was fit to climb onto the balconies.

Marianne would use the tallest vehicle, the truck, because she was shorter than Glenn by seven inches, who would use the hatchback to stand on.

Daryl and Hershel went with Marianne to the back of the hotel while everyone else stayed in the front. Hershel drove the truck into place under the first balcony and left the truck as Marianne climbed on top of it.

She had to make a little hop to grab onto the top of the railing. Marianne pulled herself up, withholding a grunt, and her feet made purchase on the edge of the balcony that stuck out past the railing. From there it was even easier. She swung one leg over the railing and then the other.

"See, easy," Marianne called down to Daryl and Hershel.

Marianne walked to the door and pulled on the handle. It wouldn't budge.

She repeated the same thing three more times and by the fifth balcony she was losing hope that one of the doors would be unlocked.

Marianne tugged on the handle of the sliding glass door and found no resistance. Silently thanking whoever was careless enough to leave it unlocked, she closed it again in case there were walkers inside.

"Of course it's the last one," Marianne said to herself. "It's open," she called down to Daryl and Hershel. "I guess you can tell Glenn he can stop."

"I'll tell everyone. They'll be happy to hear it," Hershel said.

She leaned over the railing and looked down at the two men. "I'm goin' in."

"Be careful," Daryl said.

"Always."

Marianne turned her attention to the door. She banged on it but nothing responded. With a knife in her right hand, a flashlight in her left, and her Ruger ready to be drawn she slid open the door and pushed part of the curtains aside.

The flashlight beam swept across the room to reveal that it was empty of walkers and people. She entered and went straight to the other door.

From what she saw of the outside of the building, Marianne concluded there would be no windows to let light into the hallway.

Marianne quickly opened the door and then looked left and right with her flashlight, which revealed that she was alone. So far, so good.

As she walked to the closest stairwell she noticed the type of locks on the doors. It was a stroke of the luck that the hotel still used actual keys instead of key cards, which she wasn't sure would work without electricity.

She entered the stairwell, which she had correctly guessed also had no windows, and had no problems reaching the first floor. She exited the stairwell and found herself at the end of the first-floor hallway, which had the same worn, dark blue carpet and cream colored walls as the second floor.

There were four rooms on one side and three on the other which she all ignored as she walked towards the lobby. When she reached it, she turned off her flashlight because the windows let in enough light to see by.

The lobby had a white tiled floor and blue walls. There was a small seating area with a dead potted plant. The concierge desk was directly across the front doors and had a closed white door behind the desk, which had a short hallway to the right of it. That hallway had two more closed doors and a vending machine. To the right of the hallway was an elevator and on the left-hand wall was the door to a second stairwell.

She went behind the concierge desk and discovered it had numerous drawers, some of them with locks. The second drawer she opened had three key rings. Two small ones with only three keys each and a bigger one with eight. Marianne took them all, keeping the one with the eight keys out and stuffing the other two in her jacket pocket.

Marianne found Daryl, Glenn, T-Dog, and Rick standing directly in front of the door outside. They looked relieved to see her and she held up the keys so they could see them before getting to work figuring out which one unlocked the front door.

The fifth key she tried fit inside the lock and turned perfectly.

She barely had enough time to avoid being hit by the doors when the men opened them.

"Whoa. What the hell guys? What's the rush?" Her mind briefly went to walkers but if that were the case either everyone would be coming into the building or Daryl would be dragging her to her truck.

Glenn and T-Dog apologized.

"What took you so long?" Daryl asked.

Marianne tilted her head and raised her eyebrows at him. "First of all, it was barely ten minutes and second, I was being careful like you told me to, Mr. Worrywart."

Daryl huffed at the name but stood down. The three other men had trouble holding back a smile at what she had just called Daryl, who didn't notice because his back was to them.

"Okay, we want to take a quick look around before we make a plan," Rick said. This was exactly what the four men did while Marianne went outside.

She walked to the cars, where everyone else was congregated. Lori was still sitting in the Chevy while Carol and Hershel talked to her. Marianne went to the Chevy's hood, which Carl and Beth were sitting on and Maggie was standing beside.

"Somethin' wrong with Lori?" Marianne asked.

Maggie shook her head. "Nothin' serious. Just normal pregnancy stuff."

Glenn, T-Dog, Daryl and Rick came out of the building and crowded around the Chevy.

"You got the keys?" Rick asked Marianne.

She dug the two key rings out of her pocket and placed it with the one she still had in her hand on the hood of the Chevy, which Carl and Beth slid off of.

"We gotta figure out what goes to what," T-Dog said.

As the others continued to talk, Marianne picked up one of the smaller rings and studied the keys. Marianne singled out a key and then looked for the same one on the other rings.

"This one's the master key," Marianne interrupted, holding up one of keys attached to the bigger ring. Everyone looked at her and then it.

"How do you know?" Beth asked curiously, before anyone else could.

This was now the second time Merle's lesson on lock picking had come in handy. Daryl would have figured it out too if he hadn't been standing back with his arms crossed. "The cuts are shaved down. The other two rings have the same one, so we can clear the floors at the same time."

"That solves the problem of having to find the room keys," Glenn said.

Out of the corner of her eye Marianne could see Rick looking at her.

"Yeah, it does," Rick said. "Daryl and I will take the first floor, Glenn and Maggie the second, and Marianne and T-Dog the third."

"I wanna help," Carl said with purpose.

"Absolutely not," Lori said as she shook her head. At some point, she had left the Chevy and stood behind Carl.

"Me and T-Dog can take him. I ta-" _I taught Jimmy._ "We can teach him. It won't be a problem. He'll be safe with us."

Lori frowned at her and then looked at Rick. For a few seconds, it looked like they were having a conversation with just their eyes.

"He needs to learn eventually," Rick said.

"We don't know what's in there. It's too dangerous," Lori shot back.

There was a short argument and once again Lori was overruled and reluctantly agreed to let Carl do something she didn't want him doing.

Marianne was getting flashlights out of her truck when Lori came up to her.

"You need to stop," Lori said in a heated whisper.

Marianne looked at her in complete confusion, wondering if Lori had gone crazy. "Stop what?"

"Trying to raise my son."

"What?" Marianne would have laughed if she hadn't sensed how serious Lori was.

"You knew I wouldn't want him to go fishing but you said he could anyways. Now your bringing him, a little boy, with you to teach him how to kill."

"Walkers. Kill walkers. So they won't kill him. Don't you want that?"

"I want him to have a childhood. Between you and Rick—"

Marianne scowled. "Hey. If you have problem with Rick, you should go talk to him instead of getting on my ass. It's not my fault you barely speak to each other. I didn't make that mess."

The two women glared at each other but Lori backed down and stormed away.

"What the fuck?" Marianne said under her breath as she went back to finding the flashlights.

Marianne's group and the duo, Glenn and Maggie, decided to each take a stairwell to clear.

Because there would be no windows, T-Dog and Carl turned on their flashlights. T-Dog opened the door to their stairwell, the one Marianne hadn't used earlier, and they were immediately met with the stink of a walker that started growling when it spotted them.

They shined their lights on the walker. The man it once was had hung himself. Its effort of reaching out to them made it swing.

"I got it." Marianne shot it in the head with an arrow.

She waited with Carl while T-Dog went upstairs and cut the rope. The dead walker fell to the ground with an unpleasant crunch and Marianne retrieved her arrow, wiping most of the gore off on the walker's shirt.

The three of them walked up to the second floor and T-Dog and Marianne checked behind the space under the stairs blocked by an ice machine before leaving Carl there while they checked the stairs leading to the third floor.

T-Dog and Marianne called Carl to come up.

"You ready?" She asked Carl when he reached them.

"I'm ready."

Carl opened the door and T-Dog went in first, Carl second, and Marianne last. There were ten rooms, five on each side of the hallway, and they chose the right side first. Everything went smoothly. There weren't any walkers to kill but Marianne and T-Dog gave Carl pointers on how to clear a room.

Marianne pushed back memories of her and Jimmy. She couldn't be distracted right now.

At the middle door on the left side, something answered when they knocked. T-Dog and Marianne looked one another and then at Carl, who looked disturbingly excited.

"Okay, so I guess you'll get a lesson on walker killing," Marianne said.

Before they opened the door, Marianne and T-Dog went over different scenarios, like what to do when you're alone and what to do if there's more than one walker. After all that, it was time to specifically tell him how to kill walkers.

"Since you're short, you wanna kick their leg, make 'em fall. Try to get behind them if you can and then kill it, but only if you absolutely can," Marianne said and Carl nodded.

T-Dog told Carl to stand back as he and Marianne got into position. The walker was still scratching at the door and so far, it only sounded like there was one of them.

With her knife in hand, Marianne waited for T-Dog to open the door. He looked at her for confirmation and she nodded. The door opened and Marianne anticipated the walker's moves. She only let it stumble halfway out of the room before knocking it down onto its stomach.

Marianne pushed her boot into its back to keep it laying prone on the floor. "Now kill it," she told Carl.

"Really?" Carl sounded like he couldn't believe it.

"Yeah, you need to get a feel for it."

Carl took the knife from the sheath on his belt. He stared at the walker so long she thought he wasn't going to do it but then he bent down and stabbed the side of the walker's head. The knife didn't go all the way through the skull. "That's okay. Try again and use more force."

Carl nodded, his brow set in determination. He raised the knife again and brought it down hard. This time it passed completely through the skull and pierced the walker's brain.

"Good. You'll have to be faster but we can work on that." Marianne didn't know when that would be. Hell, she was sure Rick and Lori would be mad at her for letting him do this much. "Let's keep this particular lesson between the three of us." Marianne looked at Carl and the T-Dog, her eyebrows raised.

"Fine with me," T-Dog said.

"I won't tell," Carl promised.

The trio finished the remaining rooms and found no more walkers. They regrouped with everyone in the lobby to decide how they would proceed.

"We'll stick to the first floor," Rick said. The group divided into six rooms which had twin beds. It was Rick and Carl, Lori and Carol, Maggie and Beth, T-Dog and Glenn, Marianne and Daryl, and Hershel with a room to himself.

Now that they knew for sure they were staying at the hotel, the group brought in all the supplies they needed and moved the vehicles to the back of the hotel.

When they were settling in they discovered that they had a problem. There was nowhere to safely make a fire inside but then Marianne remembered something and went out back to her truck. She had to dig a little before she found the small camper stove that came with the stolen truck.

It looked like a short canister, no more than three inches high and five inches in diameter, with square holes around the side and nestled inside of it were three other pieces. You needed to put together all four to make the stove. It wouldn't give off enough heat to warm up a room but at least they could cook.

Figuring out how to put it together took Marianne a few minutes but when she was finished she showed Carol, who did the majority of the cooking with the one person or another assisting her. "Will this do?"

Carol nodded. "Where'd you find it?"

"In my top hat where I get all the rabbits we eat," Marianne joked, inwardly cringing when she realized that Carol could take it the wrong way. Ever since Marianne had yelled at her for defending Daryl, their relationship had been a little strained.

Carol smiled. "You'd think a top hat would give you a fancier stove."

Marianne smirked. "Do you need any help?"

"No, Beth has already offered. Why don't you get some rest?"

Marianne nodded but she did the opposite. She found Maggie helping Glenn and T-Dog drag the couches and armchair from the seating area closer to the hallway.

"Hey Maggie. How about I start those lessons I promised you?" Marianne asked. Maggie quickly abandoned her current task. "We gotta do some setup first."

They commandeered one of the mattresses from a room they weren't using. Marianne kept the fitted sheets on and stuffed pillows underneath it. The mattress had springs and she didn't want the arrows to hit them too hard. The pillows would do little but it was better than nothing.

Maggie helped her drag it down the hallway, across the lobby and lean it upright on left wall of the lobby so they could get the most light. Marianne used a permanent marker from the office Rick and Daryl had found behind the concierge desk to draw targets.

Before they could start, Marianne insisted on spending some time adjusting the bow to suit Maggie. "It'll make it easier. I promise."

After Marianne was satisfied with the adjustments, the lesson started.

"You can have my release. I don't use it anymore. I found out my bow is, well I won't explain it, but I can shoot with my fingers just fine. But I'll show you how to shoot with the release." Marianne showed Maggie how to put it on and hold it. "What I like about this one is that it's a thumb trigger that you can take the wrist strap off of. Usin' the strap is useful if we're goin' into a situation where we know there'll be walkers but otherwise it can be a pain in the ass to wear it all the time. But on the other hand, without the strap you can end up dropping it and losin' it. And then there's the few seconds you need to pull it out of your pocket that could be crucial."

"Why can't I just use my fingers?" Maggie asked.

"Your bow is too short."

Marianne demonstrated how to shoot a bow, slowly going through each step to explain them.

"I didn't know so much went into it," Maggie said, a little in awe.

"You'll get used to it. Now, I'm aimin' for the bottom right target." Marianne put an arrow in place, drew her bow, and shot in one fast, fluid motion. Her arrow struck the middle of the bottom right target. Marianne did it again with a different target but in slow motion so Maggie could keep track of what she was doing.

"Your turn," Marianne said after shooting a few arrows and retrieving them from the mattress.

Maggie practiced for about an hour, until her arm got too tired. The whole time Marianne was adjusting Maggie's stance and giving her tips.

When it was getting close to bedtime Carol, Maggie, Beth, and Glenn retrieved comforters from the second floor. Daryl shook his head when he saw Marianne had layered five of them on her bed. He only had three.

"Not a word," Marianne said, pointing her finger at him. "I'm not a walking furnace like you are."

The siblings settled into their respective beds ready to sleep. Laying there in the dark and the silence gave Marianne time to think.

She sat up in bed. "Daryl?"

"Yeah?"

"We need to talk." The sooner, the better.

"Now?"

"Yeah. It can't wait," Marianne said. Daryl sat up. Even with her eyes adjusted to the dark she could only see the shape of him. His face was obscured by shadows.

"What is it?" He sounded tentative and little hopeful. Marianne grimaced. He probably thought she was going to tell him what had happened to her.

"You doubted me today and it's not the first time," Marianne said. "You never used to doubt me."

"I'm not doubtin' you. I…" Daryl trailed off and she wished she could see his face. "I wasn't there when you needed me." His voice was pained. "I can't make up for whatever happened to ya but I can be here now."

Marianne bit her lip and made sure her voice was steady before she spoke. "Daryl. I know you're here. But I want things like they used to be, as close as they ever can be. And I know I'm different but I'm still me. I'm still Marianne."

* * *

Marianne startled awake and was instantly aware she wasn't in a bed anymore. She blearily opened her eyes. Her back ached. Her head ached. The concrete she was laying on was cold but not as cold as she was.

She was in one of the stairwells under the stairs, an ice machine partially blocking the area underneath the stairs so when someone came out of the door they wouldn't see her.

A tired sigh escaped her and then a groan as she gingerly sat up. Marianne scooted backwards a little to use the wall to prop her up. She looked up and saw Rick standing over her with his hands on his hips, a stance she found annoying, especially at this moment in time.

Instead of speaking, Rick handed her his canteen and she drank greedily. When she finished, she closed the cap and put it on the ground next to her.

"Now, we're goin' to have a talk," Rick said.

"I don't want to talk."

"Too bad. I'm putting my foot down. Things can't continue like they are."

"It can if I try hard enough," Marianne said. She could easily see Rick's jaw clench. "Where's Daryl?"

"He's not here. He had the last night watch and then left to go hunting. He didn't have to run around this place in a panicked search for you."

She had fallen asleep late that night and must have slipped out of the room after Daryl had left. "What time is it?"

"Almost 11 in the morning. We've been searching for two hours," Rick said. Marianne looked down at her lap and bit her bottom lip. "We even looked outside and I was about to send out search parties to spread out to a wider area."

She was feeling more and more guilty but Marianne didn't think she should be. This wasn't her fault and here Rick was, blaming her for the trouble she had unintentionally caused. "Are you tryin' to make me feel bad 'cause this wouldn't be happening if you had waited."

He tried to look her in the eye but she wouldn't have it. "I'm sorry for leaving you behind. I truly am. I have been since we left the highway."

The guilt on Rick's face made her feel a little better but she wouldn't let him off that easy. "Apology not accepted."

"How long are goin' to be mad at me?"

She crossed her arms over her chest. "I'm aimin' for a world record."

Rick gave a frustrated sigh and roughly ran a hand through his hair. "Damn it, Marianne. I'm tryin' to keep us alive. At every turn you're causin' trouble. Arguing. Questioning my decisions. Disobeyin' orders."

"There's one of your problems. I don't like orders."

"Then what would you suggest I do?"

"Askin' nicely would be a start."

"Then I'll ask nicely. Can you please stop causing trouble?"

Marianne pretended to think about. "Umm…no."

Rick was having a hard time keeping calm and Marianne would have smiled if she wasn't exhausted.

He took some deep breaths and Marianne sensed she really wasn't going to like what he was about to say. "Something's eating you alive. Can you tell Daryl, someone, anyone what's wrong?"

"No." Panic rose in her chest and gripped her heart. It was time to flee. Marianne stood up. Rick wasn't giving her enough room to pass so she'd have to push him aside.

She gave him a few seconds to move and when he didn't she shouldered past him.

"Marianne—"

She whirled around to look at him with wild eyes. "You don't understand! He won't see me the same, none of you will. You'll want me gone."

"I do understand."

"No, you don't." Marianne backed away from him towards the door. "You can't help me and I don't want your help."

"Marianne, just listen to me for a minute."

"Leave me alone!" It had just gotten through her sleep addled mind that they were on the second floor and that she should be going for the stairs and not the door so she changed directions.

Marianne heard a growl of frustration behind her.

"I killed my best friend!" Rick yelled. Marianne stopped dead in her tracks. He had shouted at her before but never with such anguish in his voice. "A man I grew up with. A man I considered a brother. He was goin' to kill me and take Lori and Carl. He thought I couldn't keep them safe."

Rick was breathing hard and Marianne thought he was finished but he continued.

"Lori's mad at me. I'm mad at her. Carl's starting to act out and I don't think I can fix it without fixin' me and Lori and I don't see that happening anytime soon." Rick looked at her with vulnerable eyes. "The baby's not mine and I don't know what I'm gonna do, how I'm gonna feel when its born."

She stared at him, stunned that he would bare part of his soul to her. This was unknown territory for Marianne. To know someone like this other than her brother.

She was sure Daryl kept things from her like she did from him but they knew most of what there was to know about each other.

"I've done terrible things. They do look at me differently but they don't hate me and they don't want me gone. I'm dealing with my own shit while tryin' to survive. I have an idea of what you're going through."

This thing happening with Rick was brand new and messy and he was confusing her again. He looked at her and what she saw in his eyes moved her. She didn't like it but she knew it was her turn to share. Marianne fought against her instinct to run. She went to the stairs going up and sat down on a step, not sure if she would be able to stand through the whole story.

"Jimmy made if off the farm," she said in a broken whisper. Tears threatened to fall but she held them back. "He didn't die there."

* * *

It was Rick's turn to stare, shocked that Marianne was opening up and shocked by this new revelation. Everyone, including him, had assumed Jimmy had died on the farm, partly because Marianne hadn't mentioned anything about it. Now he knew that he had left two behind.

He stayed silent. If he talked, he might ruin her momentum.

"We went to the highway but no one was there. All we had was Daryl's note so we started east. I spotted your campsite, the ruins, but we had just missed you. And then we went to the nearest town and I knew y'all had been there but we were too late."

His stomach felt like a pit. If he hadn't driven the group so hard, if he had let them rest, Marianne and Jimmy would've found them. It could've been that easy. His regrets were already piling up and she had barely started.

"We never stopped tryin' to find all of you. Jimmy trusted me, with everything." There was a long pause and it looked like Marianne was trying to brace herself for what she was going to say next. "Day thirteen. It was a nice morning. It was goin' to be one of our better days. I could feel it." She took a ragged breath. "I was so wrong."

Rick stepped towards her but stopped himself. Based on their shared history, she wouldn't want him to close the space between them.

"We found a gas station in the middle of nowhere and I went in alone. There were two men waitin' for me. I was too slow." She turned her head towards him but not to look at Rick. Instead she stared at the floor near his feet. "Frank and Will," she said with pure hatred. "I wish I could forget their names." Marianne glared at the floor and then her eyes looked distant. "They wanted more from me than just our stuff."

Rick's whole body tensed and his heart started pounding. He was horrified about where this looked like it was going and hoped to God it hadn't gone that far.

"They threatened me to get Jimmy to put his gun down. That's how I got this." She traced the scar on her cheek and Rick's jaw clenched. Marianne looked briefly at him and then stared at her lap where her hands were clasped together. "They asked Jimmy if he wanted to join them but Jimmy wouldn't." Marianne's hands began to shake. "He said he'd rather die so Frank shot him in the stomach."

He wanted to comfort her but he didn't know how. He would do anything to make her hurt less. Rick would have killed those two bastards given the chance.

"They started to take me to their camp where the rest of their group was but the idiots didn't tie me up. Frank held me at gun point instead. I made as much noise as I could walkin' through the woods, wishing on a damn star that walkers would show up." Marianne looked at Rick again. There was a glint of something indiscernible in her eye. "And they did." He figured it out—it was vengeance.

"I pretended to fall and slipped a knife out of my boot and hid it up my sleeve. I stabbed Frank, took his gun, and ran. They shot at me, I shot Will." Marianne was rushing her words. "Walkers heard us but Frank and Will didn't hear them. Frank got bit, went down real quick. Will tried to get away but I shot his leg and they swarmed." The glint disappeared and her voice slowed and dulled. "I smiled when I heard them scream. I enjoyed their pain. Good people don't do that."

"Marianne." Rick took a step forward. He wanted to tell her she was a good person. That if she was bad, she wouldn't be so torn up over what she had done. She wouldn't be torturing herself.

Marianne held up her hand. "There's more." She took a deep breath. "I found their camp. No one was there so I hid and waited. Three men showed up. No, two men and a teenager." She closed her eyes. "I shot the two men in the head before they even knew what was happening. The boy… he begged for his life. I killed him anyways."

Her eyes opened and they were filled with pain.

"You had to do it. You didn't have a choice," Rick said, hoping the sincerity in his voice would get through to her.

"I tell myself that. That I needed to kill them so they wouldn't hurt me or anyone else. I tell myself it was the right thing to do but I know I'm lyin'. I had to kill Frank and Will but I didn't have to kill the rest, especially the boy. It was cold-blooded murder." Marianne looked him straight in the eye. "But all I could see was Jimmy lyin' on the ground, bleedin'. And I wanted them dead."

How could he make her understand?

"I killed those two men in the bar without even blinking and I don't feel guilty about it," Rick said. "I'm glad I did it or they would've killed us and taken the farm. If those men had found you, they would've hurt you. It was you or them."

"But you couldn't kill Randall."

"I was going to. If it wasn't for Carl. But now I'm not so sure that would stop me anymore." Rick paused and Marianne turned her head away from him, making it hard to see the expression on her face. "I see you now like I always have. A survivor and a pain in the ass."

Her head whipped around and she gave him a dirty look. "You're the pain in the ass."

He saw her snark as a good sign. "You ought to tell Daryl."

Marianne was silent for a long time but Rick stood there patiently. Finally, she nodded and stood up, her shoulders set in a new resolve. "I hope he gets back soon."

* * *

 **A/N: Congratulations for making it to the end! I'm glad you weren't deterred and I hope you enjoyed it.**

 **So, I'm super, super nervous about the ending. It's a turning point in Rick and Marianne's relationship and I spent a lot of time on it. I tried to make it plausible and I hope I succeeded. Feedback would be great. It'd help me know if the progression of their relationship is making sense.**

 **Anonymous Howler: Sometimes I wonder about that and wonder what it is about my writing or story that doesn't move people to review. I can only hope and wish for more. It's pretty lame but I've had dreams where I have received reviews.**


	27. Chapter 27

**A/N: Thank you for the follows and the favorites and for continuing to read.**

 **Thank you to** **lizzydahia1 (don't worry about your English, it's way better than my French), x NikiSt x, GraceTM86, elljayde, and brandibuckeye for the reviews! The feedback about Rick and Marianne was super helpful and it's reassuring to know I'm making sense.**

 **I decided to use a lot of real places in this chapter. I changed a name of one town and maybe something else but I can't remember. Google Maps and Earth helped but I took artistic license in certain places, like what's inside buildings because heck if I know.**

 **On another note, when I posted chapter 26 I hadn't realized it was a few days past a year when I posted the first chapter. Some of you have probably been around since the beginning and that blows my mind. Also, I can't believe I haven't made it to season 3 yet. If anyone's curious, it's sometime in December in the story right now.**

* * *

 **Chapter Twenty-seven**

Daryl knew something had happened the second he stepped into the hotel. It was the way everyone had stopped what they were doing and looked at him. Everyone except Marianne.

"What happened?" He asked the room.

Rick walked towards him. "We should talk. Alone."

"I don't wanna talk. Just tell me what the hell is wrong."

"Everything's okay. Marianne's okay," Rick said.

"Where is she?"

"We really should talk before you see her," Rick said.

"Where is she?" His voice was angry and rough. He wasn't angry at Marianne, he was angry at all of these people who weren't giving him real answers.

Rick sighed. "She's resting."

Daryl launched himself towards the hallway, storming past the group without a glance. Their room was the third one on the right. He rushed to it but slowed down when he went to open the door. He did so quietly and his gaze went directly to her bed. She was laying on her side, facing the door with her eyes closed. At that moment, all he saw was the little girl she used to be. It pulled at his heart. That little girl hadn't even had a childhood no matter how hard he had tried to give one to her.

Once he saw she was safe he calmed down a little. He closed the door slightly, leaving it cracked open. "What happened?" Daryl asked.

"She sleepwalked again. It took us a couple of hours to find her. She was under the stairs behind an ice machine."

Daryl studied Rick. "There's somethin' else. What happened?" He asked a third time.

Rick momentarily ducked his head down and rubbed the back of it. "We fought. I told her to tell someone what was wrong. I told her some things."

Daryl narrowed his eyes at him. "What kind of things?"

"Stuff. About me." Rick shrugged. "And then she told me what happened to her."

Joy and disappointment clashed inside Daryl. He was happy Marianne had finally told someone but it hadn't been him. Out of the whole group, why had she chosen Rick? Would she tell him too?

"She wants to tell you too," Rick said as if he could read Daryl's thoughts.

Daryl looked at the door, suddenly nervous. He didn't know how he would handle the truth but he was going to try his hardest to do what was best for her.

"How bad is it?" Daryl asked, trying to find out how much he should prepare himself before he woke her up.

"I think there are parts that'll be hard for you to hear," Rick said.

Daryl nodded and pushed the door open. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Rick walking away. He went into the room and stood next to Marianne's bed, looking down at her. She had the comforters pulled up past her chin and almost over her mouth. Her face, like always when she was sleeping, had that almost peaceful look. He took a deep breath.

"Marianne." Before he could finish saying her name, her eyes opened.

"You're back." She began to sit up, pulling the comforters with her so she stayed under them up to her neck.

"Rick told me what happened," Daryl said. Her eyes flicked away from him and then back. He could see the comforters bunch up as she began to hold them tighter.

"Did he tell you that I'm ready for you to know?"

"Yeah, and he said that you told him," he said in a neutral tone. He was a little hurt about it, which he couldn't help, but he didn't want her to think that he was upset with her.

"Not everything." She rushed to say. "Not as much as I'm gonna tell you."

"I'm not mad you told Rick first."

Marianne bit her lip. "I just don't want to hurt your feelings."

He gave her one of those smiles he never gave anyone else. "You didn't. Not even close."

He pulled the armchair next to the bed and sat down. Marianne started with the night the farm was overrun. When he found out that Jimmy had still been alive, he knew that his death had something to do with her turmoil.

Marianne filled in details where previously she had been vague.

"I was so sure I was gonna hear your motorcycle or a car. When no one came, I thought you were dead or that the group was scattered so nobody could tell for sure who was gone or that they needed to go back. But when me and Jimmy made it to the highway, I found your message and that's when I knew you had left me."

Daryl felt like he was going to implode from guilt. How was he going to survive the rest of what she had to say?

She told him about how she'd almost found them at the ruins and then the town. She recounted the time she spent with Jimmy traveling around Georgia in an untiring search for the group. He kept finding himself biting his thumb.

Then she got to day thirteen.

Daryl nearly lost it when she told him about Frank and Will. How dare they touch her? How dare they hurt his baby sister? He wanted to pummel them until there was nothing left of their faces. He wanted to gut them while they were still breathing and leave them for walkers to eat alive.

He jumped up from the armchair and began pacing, trying to keep himself under control. It wouldn't help Marianne if he couldn't keep himself in check. Now he knew where the scar on her face had come from. She'd have a reminder of that day for the rest of her life.

He was able to calm down a little when she told him about their deaths but he worried more. Was this what Marianne had been holding in? Was she torturing herself because she killed two assholes who were going to rape her?

"You had to do it," Daryl said. "You didn't have a choice. It was the right thing to do."

"I'm not done." Marianne looked at him with wide, sad eyes. "Remember, I told you. There's always more."

Daryl braced himself.

She told him that she tracked down their camp and waited for Will and Frank's group to show up and how she didn't have a clue what she was going to do at first. Daryl had a good idea of what she had ended up doing.

"They were movin' on the next day and I knew we might end up goin' in the same direction. I might've run into them and that's when I decided they had to die. I shot the one holding a rifle first. A head shot. And then the other man too." Marianne looked down at her lap. "It wasn't hard at all, Daryl. I didn't hesitate, not for one second."

"It was you or them." Daryl didn't mean to interrupt her but she had to know. He had to let her know that he understood. "You were survivin'."

"Rick said the same thing. That it was me or them. But it was murder, Daryl. It was murder."

A thick silence descended over them. He wanted to say more but felt it wasn't the right time, so Daryl waited. He would give her all the time she needed. After all the things he hadn't been able to do for her, she deserved it.

"I left the teenager for last. I did pause. Thought about how young he was. Then I thought about how young Jimmy was. Thought about how much pain he was in. I even thought about Randall, how Rick couldn't kill him. But I wanted revenge." She said the last part with so much shame in her voice it made his chest ache. He didn't want her to feel ashamed. There was no shame in it, not in his eyes.

"He said I could take everything, all of their supplies, the truck. That's where I got it and all the things in it. His last words were 'Just please don't kill me'."

There was pain. So much pain in her eyes, in her voice. He wanted to take it away but he wasn't sure how. He was afraid he'd say or do the wrong thing. But he would try his hardest. He would be there for her. He couldn't change that he hadn't been with her then. He knew 'if' and 'maybe' and 'what could've been' were useless but Daryl would've taken the shots so she didn't have to. It would've been him that carried the burden of their deaths, not her.

* * *

The second telling was harder in some ways and easier in others than the first.

Marianne told Daryl everything, even more than what she had revealed to Rick. She recounted every second she could remember and every detail. Nothing was left unsaid.

"His last words were 'Just please don't kill me'." Saying that aloud hit her with the full force of what she had done. It took her breath away. She was a murderer and nothing would change that. Marianne could maybe trick herself into believing killing the two men at the camp was self-defense but not the teenager.

"I didn't have to do it. I could've just left or taken his stuff and let him keep a knife and some food. Let him live. I took that away from him." Marianne looked at Daryl and tried to read what was in his eyes but there were so many things jumbled together in them she couldn't guess what he was thinking.

There was sadness, guilt, understanding, and more. Was that pain she saw? Had she caused his pain or was he trying to shoulder some of hers? She didn't deserve that. It was her burden to carry but wasn't that what she was doing right now? Letting him carry some of it. Marianne knew she was being selfish but she couldn't help herself.

She looked away from him. "I'm scared by how easy it was."

"If you're feeling like this, then it wasn't easy," Daryl said. There was a plea in his voice. She guessed it was for her to understand but what was she supposed to understand?

"It was easy at the time. That's what matters," Marianne said, trying to make him realize that what she did was unforgivable and that she wasn't a good person. She probably never was and this proved it.

Daryl shook his head. "It might, but that's not all that matters. You were in shock. That matters. You were assaulted. That matters. They killed Jimmy and you were next. That matters. Don't feel sorry for that boy. Don't for a second think that he wouldn't've hurt ya. Even if he didn't, he would've let the others do whatever they wanted."

Marianne could hear the sense in what he was saying and it confused her. "I don't know what to do. I don't know how to stop feeling this."

"What if I had killed 'em the way you did? And for why you did? Would that change how you think about me?" Daryl asked with a new determination in his voice.

"No." Marianne had never thought about it that way. "I'd just be worried about you."

"It's no different for me. I'm worried what it's done to you but I don't care what you did. Hell, I think you made the right choice." Daryl sat on the bed next to her. "And like you said, you changed a little but you're still you."

He had thrown her words back at her and she didn't know what to say.

Daryl wrapped his arms around her and she leaned into him. Hugs between them were far from frequent. It was usually uncomfortable for them but this was one of the times it wasn't.

Marianne was emotionally exhausted. Tears slipped out of her eyes unbidden. She could feel a damp spot growing on Daryl's jacket.

It was a jolt when he pulled away.

"Damn it." Daryl banged his hand against the wall. Marianne flinched, a souvenir from her childhood. "It's my fault. Rick don't own me. I'm a grown ass man. I should've just left 'em."

Marianne briefly closed her eyes. A few leftover tears came out and collected on her eyelashes. She didn't agree with him that it was his fault but she did agree that he should have left them to go back for her. They could've done okay without the group and they probably would have caught up with them anyways.

"If I had to choose between you and them, I'd choose you, so why the hell didn't I?" Marianne knew he wasn't asking her, but asking himself and maybe the universe, so she didn't answer him.

Daryl paced some more before kicking the small plastic trash can by the dresser. It skittered across the floor. He took a few long strides to the nightstand where he grabbed the alarm clock, ripping its cord out of the socket, and threw it across the room. It smashed into the wall and broke.

A tendril of fear was creeping into her chest. The fear wasn't of Daryl but an involuntary reaction from the past. She swallowed hard and pushed down the memories that still plagued her after years of trying to forget.

He went for the water bottle on the nightstand next. It hit the door when he threw it. Daryl was in a rage she hadn't seen in a long time. It was the kind of rage that had led him to nearly beat their dad to death. She didn't know what he'd grab next but it couldn't go any further.

"Stop!" Marianne was relieved that she had managed to keep the fear out of her voice.

Daryl looked at her. It was if he had forgotten she was in the room and was surprised to see her there. That surprise was quickly replaced by guilt and horror. Marianne knew exactly what he was thinking.

She shook her head. "You're not him. Not even close."

There was a knock on the door. "Are you two okay?" Rick asked from the other side.

Marianne wiped the tears from her face, went to the door and opened it a little but not enough for Rick to see the room. "We're good."

"If you need me to—"

"We're okay. I'm okay." She didn't like the look he was giving nor what it meant. "He would never," she said in an angry whisper before closing the door in his face.

How could Rick even think that Daryl would hit her? After what he had seen between the siblings and what he knew about Daryl. She hoped it was his cop side taking over, the one that assumed the worst out of people.

Marianne turned around to look at Daryl, who had his shoulders slumped. He looked defeated.

"I'm sorry," he said.

"Okay." She forgot about her own feelings for the moment. How could she make him feel better? "I'm not one to judge. After I punched Rick a few times I drew a knife on him. I don't know what I would've done if Glenn hadn't walked in." Marianne chose to omit the part where Glenn, in his confusion, almost pointed his gun at her.

"You drew a knife on him?" Daryl asked incredulously.

"Yeah, just ask Rick or Glenn." Marianne sighed. "I went a little crazy. Merle would've been proud." It was getting easier to mention Merle and she wondered if it had gotten easier for Daryl to hear him mentioned. "Hell, he would be proud of me for killing those men." She tried to make it sound casual but anyone could hear in her voice how not okay she was.

Daryl stayed silent. He probably didn't know what to say. Maybe he was talked out. She knew she was but she had at least one more thing to say. "You have to make peace with yourself, I can't give it to you. No matter how much I want to."

"As long as you promise to try to forgive yourself," Daryl said.

"I promise," Marianne said. There was a long pause. The heaviness that had been with her for so long was a little lighter. She knew her problems and the pain was still there and would probably be there for a long time, but at least Daryl knew. At least she still had him. "Can we pretend for the rest of the day that everything is normal?"

"Sure we can," Daryl said.

Neither of the siblings felt like being around the group. They didn't speak for awhile and when they did it was about nothing special, only important to her because it was so ordinary.

Carol ended up bringing them dinner, wearing a comforting smile which Marianne returned with a weak one.

After they had finished eating, Marianne made a nest of blankets on the floor in between the beds. She sat with the nightstand on her right, leaning on the side of her bed with her back to the door. Daryl was sitting diagonal to her, leaning against his own bed with his legs stretched out as far as they could go.

"Remember when I made my first kill and you thought I was upset because I killed a rabbit," Marianne said, recalling her first real hunt fondly.

Daryl snorted. "Yeah, but you were upset because yours was smaller than mine."

"And you told me that it just proved I was a good shot because the target was small."

"You're a natural, even as a kid. Better than I ever was with a compound," Daryl said.

Marianne hugged the blankets closer to her. "Don't forget, I'm pretty decent with a crossbow."

"Only because you had the best teacher." Daryl smirked.

Marianne laughed. "Can't argue with that."

* * *

The next day and the day after that the cold wasn't the only thing that kept them inside. The freezing rain did too. It was only then that they realized they had lost their one umbrella that the person on watch on the roof could have used to try to stay a little dry. They managed to procure a plastic poncho that wasn't a match for the rain but would prevent the poor soul that wore it from being completely soaked through.

Marianne was taken off watch since it was clear to everyone that she had a hard time keeping warm. Even Beth, who was skinnier than she was, was doing better than her. It was a constant struggle and more often than not her teeth were chattering or she was shivering. She had argued that she was perfectly fine when out hunting but then it was pointed out that the temperature had dropped since the last time she had gone out.

It was tough going in the hotel without a proper fire. It had been debated whether they should take the risk and build one on top of the lobby tiles but the rain had given them the answer. There was no dry wood to burn. They had only collected a large amount of kindling. Anything bigger wouldn't fit in the camper stove, which Carol was never far from. It needed constant attention to keep burning high and, when she wasn't cooking, she had taken up the habit of heating water so everyone could have a warm drink. Unfortunately, they had no tea.

It was late afternoon. The previous night Rick said they would postpone moving if the rain was still bad and it was. They were stuck at the hotel. Rick and Hershel were in the office looking at one of their maps spread out on the desk. Lori was resting in her room. T-Dog had just left for the roof to take Daryl's place. The rest of them were hanging out in the lobby.

There were three couches they had moved to the beginning of the hallway, all placed in a semi-circle facing it so that their backs were to the lobby. Carol, who was presently and patiently nursing the camper stove's fire, had covered them with sheets since the material was a little scratchy. Maggie and Glenn were on the middle couch sitting close together and talking quietly. Beth and Carl were on the left couch with a notebook from the office opened between them. Miraculously, Carl had been convinced to do schoolwork. Beth was good at math so she was talking Carl through some math problems she had made up.

Marianne was huddled under blankets on the right couch, reading one of Carl's comic books so she could understand what the hell he was talking about. He liked to share with her and Beth the stories and his opinions on them. All both of them could do was nod their heads and get the characters from different comics mixed up.

There's was also the fact that the comic books distracted her. The past couple of days were hard. Only Daryl and Rick knew her secret. The rest of them were clueless, only knowing that she had freaked out again over something bad that had happened to her and that she had told Rick and Daryl about it. She felt like a fraud around the group. They thought she was something she wasn't.

The stairwell door down the first-floor hallway, the one with roof access, opened and closed, making everyone in sight of the hallway look up. This time, instead of T-Dog going up, it was Daryl coming down. He dripped all the way down the hallway, leaving darks spots on the carpet. Marianne felt bad. Everyone was having longer shifts to make up for her being temporarily pulled from watch.

As if her body was teasing her for her thoughts, she started shivering again. She had stood up and let the blankets she had wrapped around herself fall away from her.

Marianne searched through the blankets for the grey knit hat she had taken to wearing. She hadn't bothered to put it back on when it had fallen off while sitting on the couch. She also pulled her gloves on that she had taken off so she could turn the comic book pages without ripping them.

The hat and the gloves helped a little and the shivering was down to a minimum when Daryl reached the end of the hallway.

"I put a change of clothes on your bed since you forgot," Marianne said. "And there's a mountain of towels next to them." One of the few perks of staying in a hotel was there were a lot of towels. Although, they'd trade in the towels for a fireplace in a heartbeat.

Daryl disappeared into their room and came out looking warmer.

"Did you hang your clothes up?" Marianne asked, back on the couch in her cocoon of blankets.

"Yes, mom," Daryl said as he sat down next to her.

"You can't 'mom' me, not when you didn't yesterday and now they smell like mildew. I had to tie them into a trash bag so they didn't stink up the rest of your stuff."

"My stuff already stinks."

"Yeah, well, I'm tryin' to limit your dirty clothes to a three smell combo. Dirt, sweat, and walkers."

"Sometimes you two are better than television," Maggie said. The siblings turned to look at Maggie, who had a teasing smile on her face.

Marianne nudged Daryl with her elbow. "Hey look. We're on our own reality show. And people said we'd never amount to anything."

Daryl scoffed and Marianne leaned into him laughing. He good-naturedly pushed her off of him, pretending to be offended. It was nice to be playful, to be momentarily happy. Two days ago she couldn't have pictured herself like this.

"Man, I miss tv," Glenn said wistfully. "And video games."

"Me too," Carl piped in. At some point, he had been distracted away from his math and so had Beth, who had a small smile on her face.

"I miss Bertha*," Marianne said. Everyone except Daryl looked confused.

"Who's Bertha?" Maggie asked.

Daryl rolled his eyes. "It's a what. She named her space heater Bertha. Why the hell she would do that, I don't know."

Glenn, Maggie, Beth, and Carl looked at her for an answer. "Don't ask me. I was eight when I got it. Kids do some weird shit."

"Hey," Carl exclaimed.

"That includes you too, Carl." Marianne raised her eyebrows at him. "You know what I'm talkin' about."

It looked like it took a second for him to figure out that she was talking about the time she found him playing with a walker in the woods. When he did, his face turned a little red. Everyone must have sensed his embarrassment because none of them asked what Marianne was talking about.

A few more minutes of conversation passed before they went back to what they were doing when Daryl had come in. Daryl couldn't sit still for long and went to the office where Rick and Hershel still were.

Marianne sat with the comic book open on her lap but she couldn't concentrate on it anymore.

She surprised herself at how easily she could let slip something about her childhood, however innocuous and ridiculous. She usually guarded her words more carefully but the last few minutes she had spoken freely. She had been swept away in camaraderie with people other than her brother. This was a good thing, right?

Marianne thought about how much she and Daryl had changed since the quarry and since Merle had disappeared. Merle being gone was a blessing in disguise for both of them and moreso for Daryl. Well, maybe it wasn't in disguise.

Merle had some sort of hold over Daryl and Marianne could see straight through Merle's bullshit, having had a good big brother as an example of how she should be treated. Daryl didn't have that. He only had Merle to look up to and Merle only had tough love to give, but calling it love was a stretch.

She wondered what Daryl would have been like if she hadn't dropped into his life. No one would have treated him like he was worth anything, like he mattered. He'd be more damaged than he already was and more closed off to the world. He would rarely smile and never laugh.

Her chest burned and suddenly her lungs expanded with cold air that hurt her throat. She hadn't realized she had been holding her breath and now she was dizzy. Marianne looked around. Nobody had noticed.

She thought about the people that had become part of her life and she knew that, even if she had never existed, this group was good for Daryl.

* * *

Dinner came and went. Marianne was washing the dishes when Hershel came up to her.

"A little bird told me that you're interested in biology," he said.

"And by bird you mean T-Dog," Marianne said. She had mentioned during one of their drives that biology had been her favorite class and she had stolen one of the school's copies of Gray's Anatomy, which she still had when the outbreak happened. She was surprised that he had remembered.

Hershel nodded. "I was wondering if you'd be interested in me teaching you what I know about childbirth. We need more than one person who knows how to help."

"But you're a vet."

"I know it's different but I've delivered more than my fair share of animals in my life. I was in the room for both of my daughters' births. And I read up on it a little when I realized you people wouldn't be leaving my farm." Hershel said the last part with a smile.

"Why me?"

"I know you're not shy when it comes to blood and your experience with gutting animals will be useful. If it comes to a C-Section, you're accustomed to cutting into flesh."

"You're makin' me sound like a serial killer."

Hershel chuckled. "I guess I am. Will you do it? Carol's already agreed to it."

Images and diagrams flashed through her mind. Things she had thought forgotten rose to the surface. She wasn't going to let on how much she was looking forward to it. "Okay."

"I'm glad to hear it. We'll start tomorrow." Hershel began to walk away.

"Wait. We need equipment, medicine, and books to tell us what to do if somethin' goes wrong. Why wing it when we don't have to?" Marianne asked. What else were they going to do? They were already traveling around Georgia and they might as well have a destination in mind.

Hershel liked the idea and Marianne didn't envy him when he went to tell Rick about their potential road trip. Anything involving Lori was touchy and especially so when the baby was involved. She was relieved to see that Rick took to the idea in stride.

The whole group was gathered to discuss what could be a big undertaking.

"We can't risk goin' to hospitals. They'll be overrun," Rick said.

"How about an OB/GYN?" Maggie suggested.

"That's a good alternative," Hershel said.

"And the medical books?" Marianne asked. She was eager to get her hands on some. They had decided to get more than ones about childbirth.

"A bookstore might have some but where we need to look is a college library," Hershel said. "Hopefully one that has any sort of degrees like nursing."

"There's medical schools in Atlanta," Glenn said.

"We're not goin' there. When we went back for Merle we were lucky we didn't run into more than a few walkers. I don't want to count on luck," Rick said.

"How are we going to find these places?" T-Dog asked.

"We need a phone book," Hershel said.

"Give me a second." Marianne walked to the concierge desk and went behind it. A phone was on a shelf next to one of the drawers she had opened and under that phone was a stack of phone books. Marianne grabbed them and dropped them on the desk with a small thump. The group migrated over to her while she spread the phone books out.

"They still print these?" T-Dog asked.

"I don't think this place has wi-fi to look stuff up on the internet. Has anyone seen a computer?" Glenn asked. No one had.

"They're all from last year," Marianne said. "We got one for Atlanta, one for Athens, and one for Eatonton."

"I'm surprised they don't have one for Macon," Maggie said.

Marianne shrugged. "At least we have the Athens one."

Rick was impatient to start looking. Marianne went to the windows, taking the Athens phonebook with her, so she could see better. Everyone waited while she scanned for colleges and OB/GYNs.

"There's a Piedmont College and the University of Georgia in Athens," Marianne said.

"I'd say that's no more than a two hour drive," T-Dog said.

"Yeah, two hours before walkers." Daryl didn't sound all that optimistic.

"We don't have much of a choice. They're the closest ones," Marianne said. "There's a few OB/GYNs there too."

"Has anyone been to Athens?" Rick asked. There were shaking heads all around.

Daryl crossed his arms. "So we're goin' in blind?"

"For now," Hershel said.

Rick looked around at them all. "We need to find a city map."

* * *

The rain had let up during the night and even though it was still gloomy outside when the day dawned, they packed up and left the hotel.

"Good riddance," T-Dog said, as the hotel disappeared behind them.

"I give it one out of five stars," Marianne said.

It was T-Dog's turn to drive and Beth had joined them, sitting in the back seat. Marianne was happy to be back in her truck.

She blasted the heat so much the windows fogged up a little and T-Dog had to close his vents to stay comfortable. Beth had taken off her jacket and it looked like T-Dog would if he could.

"I think you're gonna melt us," he said. Beth gave a shy laugh.

"I'll turn it down once I get warmed up," Marianne promised to the two of them, not feeling at all bad that she was roasting her fellow passengers.

They took US-441N with no problems until Rick steered them off of it, heading northeast. When Rick stopped them, he told them they were a few miles south of Rockwell, a town no one knew anything about except that it was really small. They decided to take their chances and drive through it. A few minutes later, still outside of Rockwell, a small building appeared in the distance.

Her blood ran cold and she was glad she wasn't behind the wheel because she would've sped up and drove past it. She knew it wasn't the same gas station, that Jimmy's body wasn't rotting behind it, but it looked so similar.

Marianne bit at a hangnail. The closer they got the more differences she spotted. This one would be fine. This time nothing would happen.

Their small caravan stopped and Marianne got out of the truck as if nothing was bothering her. Her heart sped up and she took an extra effort to look calm so that even Daryl wouldn't notice her mini freak out.

"Glenn, Daryl. You're up," Rick said. Internally, she breathed a sigh of relief. Externally, she crossed her arms and looked mildly annoyed like she usually would whenever Rick passed her up for doing something like clearing buildings. She'd volunteer for the next one before he could voice his decision.

As soon as Glenn and Daryl cleared the building, Marianne and Rick went inside. Her heart skipped a beat when she entered. It was the exact same layout as the other gas station. She resisted the urge to back out of the door.

Marianne side-eyed the cashier counter. She told herself that Glenn and Daryl had cleared the place so there was no one hiding behind it. She forced herself to look around. It didn't look like the place had been looted. The shelves were filled with junk food, which they would pass up because they wanted to use what space they had left for real food. She knew someday, there would be a time when they were so hungry they would wish for anything edible.

They found some canned food and took all the water bottles and the sports drinks. Fitting it all in the cars meant a couple of them would have to sit crossed legged while the drinks took up floor space. Daryl's eyes kept wandering over to the beer which he didn't take but he did raid the cigarettes and pocketed all of the lighters. Glenn grabbed the few bags of beef jerky that were left. Marianne grabbed all the little individual packets of pain killers and allergy pills. She also took all of the sugar free gum. It wasn't the greatest alternative for dental hygiene, but it would be the next best thing if they ever ran out of toothpaste.

The four of them made a final sweep of the place and began to head out of the door.

"Hold on," Rick said. He walked to the small magazine rack near the door and crouched down to look at the bottom shelf. From behind some auto magazines he pulled out a Georgia Atlas. He flipped through it and then held it up for the others to see a two page spread. It was a map of Athens.

The find bolstered them and Marianne could feel the group gaining more confidence in their mission. As they drove away from the gas station, Marianne hoped that the Georgia Atlas was a good sign.

"So, Beth. What's a food that you miss that we can't get anymore?" T-Dog asked.

Marianne groaned. "Not this again." T-Dog was obsessed with reminiscing about food.

"Um, pickles?" Beth said.

"No, we can find pickles. Think of something we can't find or make," he said.

"Rocky Road ice cream," Beth said.

"That's a good one. What about you Marianne?" T-Dog asked.

"It's pizza. My answer is always pizza."

"You can do better than that," T-Dog said with enthusiasm and encouragement.

Marianne sighed. "Pepperoni pizza."

"That's not what I meant."

"With green and red peppers," Marianne continued. T-Dog huffed and Beth laughed.

They drove past a few farms before they entered Rockwell unceremoniously. A blue and white sign that had seen better days welcomed them to the town. It had been a little more than half an hour since they had left the hotel.

As they drove by more small farms and houses, Marianne wondered what Rick was looking for. Before they had left the gas station, he said he wanted to take a break to find more gas in Rockwell if it was clear of walkers and so far there hadn't been any.

Soon after that thought, the brake lights for the hatchback Glenn was driving lit up. While still in the truck Marianne looked around where they had stopped. They were on a stretch of the road where the houses had smaller yards and were closer together. Marianne glanced at the truck's gas meter. They were at a quarter of a tank and the others wouldn't be any better.

People began exiting the vehicles and Marianne reluctantly left the truck.

Daryl walked towards her. His face was red from the wind and she could swear that there was a tinge of blue to his lips.

"You're like an ice cube. You should sit in one of the cars and try to warm up a little."

"Nah, I'm good."

"I bet you can't feel your face right now," she said.

"I can feel it fine," Daryl said a little too defensively.

Marianne took a glove off and touched his cheek with the back of her hand before he could stop her. "You're lying," Marianne said and he swatted her away.

"Okay everyone." Rick clapped his gloved hands together as if he were a football coach gathering his players for a team huddle. Marianne and Daryl turned their attention to him. "We need gas and while we're at it, I want us to look through these houses. We might be coming back to stay here after we're done in Athens."

This was interesting. Rick usually said 'a few days', 'a couple of days', or 'less than a week' when talking about where they would be staying. Marianne wondered if Rick had this place in mind for the rest of the winter.

Food wouldn't be a problem for awhile if the houses in town had stocked pantries and there was plenty of land to hunt on. But they were near I-20 which could be a problem since it appeared walkers liked to collect on major roads and then there was the issue that people could exit the highway and take the road they had, going straight into town right past the houses they were about to search through. So, maybe they shouldn't stay the whole winter. A couple of weeks sounded good.

Rick assigned T-Dog and Glenn to siphon gas. Marianne butted in telling him she would help with the houses and Maggie volunteered too.

"I'll go with Daryl," Maggie said. "You don't mind, right?"

Daryl looked at Marianne. She tried to tell him with her eyes that she didn't want to be paired with Rick. She wasn't ready to be left alone with him. "Whatever," Daryl said.

She glared at Daryl and Maggie. She was pretty sure Maggie had stuck her with Rick on purpose but she didn't know what Daryl was playing at.

Marianne looked at Rick, expecting him to say they should switch partners, but no. The one time she wanted him to be bossy, he wasn't.

The two pairs each took one side of the street. Rick and Marianne walked to their first house in silence. She didn't know what to say and never having been a conversation starter in the first place compounded the situation.

A different kind of tension existed than before. They hadn't talked much after their big conversation three days ago. There hadn't been an opportunity and neither of them had gone out of their way to make one. And where exactly did they go from there anyways? Sharing secrets wasn't a miracle cure to their relationship. Things between them weren't magically fixed.

Although, she didn't hate him anymore. A small part of her still blamed him for what had happened to her. After all, the past couldn't be erased. It would take time to get used to the idea that she didn't dislike him. This didn't necessarily mean she liked him. God, this was all so confusing.

Her life experiences hadn't given her a map on how to navigate what was happening. She wondered if Rick was having the same problem.

Whatever was between them took second place to the task at hand. When they reached the front door of the first house she pushed whatever issues they had to the back of her mind.

By the fourth house they had settled into a rhythm. Rick would bang on the door. They would wait. So far, two out of the three times a walker had answered. They took turns on who entered the house first and when they were inside they each took roughly half of the place to search.

The fourth house was one of the bigger ones. Marianne was finished with her half before Rick was done with his. She joined him at the last door he had to look behind.

Rick knocked and it didn't take long before more than one walker began clawing at the door from the other side.

They looked at each other and Rick nodded at her. Both of them positioned themselves. Marianne would open the door and Rick would attack.

On the count of three Marianne opened the door enough to let the first walker try to slip through. She used her weight as resistance so the door wouldn't fly open.

Rick killed the walker and it slumped backwards, letting the other one reach its arm and then its shoulder through the crack in the door which Marianne opened wider. Only wide enough so Rick could kill it.

With the second walker dead Marianne only heard a muffled growling. Maybe one was in the closet?

She completely opened the door and Rick went in first. He had only taken a few steps into the room before he stopped. She had to peek around him to see what he was staring at.

Marianne frowned at what she saw. There was a small walker tied to a chair with duct tape over its mouth. It used to be a little boy, younger than Carl, with dark brown hair. It was wearing dinosaur pajamas featuring T-rex.

When Marianne saw that Rick wasn't getting ready to kill it, she squeezed past him and shot an arrow into its head. The walker's death seemed to startle Rick out of whatever reverie he was in.

She realized Rick probably hadn't killed a child walker yet. This wasn't her first one. Sophia had been and it had been a thousand times worse than killing a child walker she didn't know. Maybe the rest weren't as hard as they should have been because compared to the horrendous feeling of killing Sophia, the other two she had killed were relatively easy.

Rick continued to stand there staring at the boy walker but she could tell he wasn't lost in thought like before.

"The first time is really hard. The second time sucks but the third, easier than I expected. Maybe it shouldn't be, but it was," Marianne said. Her words weren't exactly comforting but it was the best she could do.

"Carl used to have those pjs," Rick said.

Well, shit. How was she supposed to respond to that? Her mind scrambled for something to say.

"But it wasn't Carl. And it wasn't a child. It was a walker," Marianne said. There, that was practical. Although, it had sounded better in her head. Her delivery lacked sympathy and she did have some.

"I know," Rick said. He left the room, walking right past Marianne without looking at her. "Let's go. We need to finish these houses."

Marianne shook her head. She let his rudeness slide this time.

As they continued to clear the rest of houses Marianne hoped they wouldn't come across another child walker but they did. Rick ended up killing a little girl and a preteen boy while Marianne killed a pair of twin boys with coordinating outfits.

Both were grim faced when they rejoined the group where they, along with Maggie and Daryl, told everyone what they had found. Except Rick and Marianne left out the dead child walkers. If Maggie and Daryl had come across any, they had also kept that detail to themselves.

Almost every single house had walkers inside and Marianne wondered how many people from this town were still alive. Probably none. She guessed dying in your house was better than dying while out in the cruel world, running and terrified for your life. It must be better to be terrified for your life while surrounded by the comforts of your own home. She wouldn't know. Home had never been a comfort.

Not wanting to rely on 441N the entire way, they decided to travel through the western part of the Oconee National Forest, heading north as straight as they could. While still in the National Forest they stopped by a creek to fill up on water.

The drive was boring which was fine with Marianne. Boring meant safe.

They took Colham Ferry Road right into Watkinsville and cut through the town before getting back onto 441N. There was an abandoned car every once in awhile, sometimes a few, that they would stop to check for gas but there wasn't a single big pile up.

They were on Macon Highway, headed straight into Athens when they came to a stop at the edge of a bridge. Marianne got out of the truck and saw why. There was a small white sign with green letters that read 'Athens Clarke County'. It was time to plan a more detailed route.

Most of the group was milling around the hatchback's hood which the atlas was on, opened up to the Athens map. Glenn was bending over to get a closer look at it.

"Where are we exactly? What's this bridge over?" Marianne asked, looking around for another sign.

Glenn looked at the map, then flipped it to a page that zoomed in on the area they were in. "I think it's McNutt Creek." He pointed out a spot on the map.

"Mc-what?" T-Dog asked.

"McNutt. With two 't's," Glenn said. Marianne smirked at the fact that Glenn felt the need to tell them how it was spelled.

"It sounds like the end of a bad joke," Maggie said.

 _A bad joke Merle would like._

It took a minute for Glenn to figure out the roads they had to take.

"The most direct way to Peidmont is taking South Milledge Avenue which turns into North Milledge Avenue. Then we either turn onto Hill Street, Cobb Street, or Prince Avenue," Glenn said.

"I say Prince Avenue. There's an OB/GYN on that street." Marianne said, looking at the list of addresses she had written. "It can't be more than a five minute walk away."

"We should go there first. It's more important," Hershel said. "We want the equipment and medicine more than the books."

"So, that's a no to UG?" Glenn asked.

"For the moment," Hershel said.

Marianne, T-Dog, and Beth got back into the truck and waited for Rick to start driving.

"I hope for our sake most of the city evacuated," T-Dog said.

Marianne put the truck into drive. "We can't count on it."

They were driving down North Milledge Avenue towards Prince Avenue when a big red two-story building appeared on the right. Marianne almost dismissed it but then she saw a sign that said 'Lane Hall' and under that 'School of Nursing' and under that 'Library'.

"Hey, T. We just passed the library."

"No kidding? That's great," he said. "I thought we'd have to wander around campus and get a little lost before we found it."

North Milledge Avenue ended and they slowed down as they turned onto Prince Avenue, which they were barely on when they stopped in front of a red brick building. It was a pharmacy which was confusing since it had the same address number as the OB/GYN.

"There's gotta be more than this," Marianne said as she pulled the truck up next to the Chevy, which Rick was driving. Marianne and Rick each rolled down a window.

"What do you think?" Rick asked.

"Turn into the parking lot," Marianne said. "Even if nothing's back there we still need to get off of the street. We're too out in the open."

Rick nodded. "You first."

They both rolled their windows back up and Marianne turned into the parking lot and it didn't take long for a group of red brick buildings to come into view. She parked in the very back and the others did too.

Most of them left the vehicles. They weren't sure which of the buildings was the right one so Rick, Daryl, Glenn, and T-Dog went to scout them out. Marianne stayed with the others. She, Maggie, and Hershel were on high alert for any walkers while the rest stayed safely in the cars.

The four men came back. "I think we got it," Daryl said.

Hershel switched places with T-Dog and Hershel, Daryl, Rick and Glenn went to break into the building. Marianne knew something was wrong when they came back too early.

"What happened?" She asked.

"This particular OB/GYN did not perform births on site," Hershel said.

"Damn it." Marianne would've kicked a car tire if she was near one.

"But we still managed to pick up a few useful things," Hershel said.

"That's not good enough. We didn't come all this way to fail. There's another one we can try. I don't think it's far from here," Marianne said.

"Okay, here's what we do," Rick said. "We go through the pharmacy while we're here and then we find the library."

"We passed it on the way here," Marianne said.

"We did?" Glenn asked.

"There was a sign." Marianne almost snapped at him. She was impatient to get things going.

"How about you lead the way," Rick said to her.

To cool off and to keep warm, Marianne stayed in the truck while the others raided the pharmacy.

When they left for the library Marianne saw two walkers shuffling across the street a little ways down Prince Avenue.

* * *

When Marianne really got it into her head to do something, she wanted to do it right. When they walked into the library and Marianne saw the shelves and shelves of books, Daryl hadn't seen a look on her face that close to the one she had when she had told him about her college acceptance and full ride scholarship. She had gone on and on about what she wanted to study and what she wanted to do with her life.

He had been just as crushed as she was when she lost the scholarship because of their asshole dad. For awhile Marianne had emotionally shut down and Daryl got into fights to let off some steam in an attempt to not kill their father.

If it wasn't for her invested interest, he wouldn't have cared very much about the task at hand and probably wouldn't have put too much thought into it. He listened as Hershel told everyone what to look for. Then he, Marianne, Glenn, and Rick went to the basement, with flashlights ready, while the others went to look through the first and second floors.

The four of them made a systematic sweep of the basement before they started looking at the books. Frankly, Daryl wouldn't be surprised if someone had died down there and turned into a walker. Stranger things had happened.

They split into pairs, Marianne and Glenn and then Rick and Daryl, each taking a book cart with them. The library had more than medical related books so it took Rick and Daryl a few shelves to find a section on nursing. All of the books everyone collected would be brought to the first floor for Hershel and Marianne to sort through and choose what was really needed so Daryl and Rick didn't hold back. They pulled a few nurse's guides to prescription medication, a few with 'fundamentals' in their titles, some about diagnosing, a couple about being a surgical nurse, and anything else that sounded remotely useful.

Rick and Daryl finished their half of the basement and Daryl waited for Glenn and Marianne at the bottom of the stairs while Rick started bringing the books to the first floor. He didn't have to wait long for the other pair to appear.

"Get anything good?" Marianne asked brightly.

"Nursing stuff," Daryl said. She was in a better mood than earlier. He noticed that she had tried to keep her temper in check, something she hadn't cared all that much about doing in the past.

"That's great. We found some on surgery and some other stuff but I didn't see anything about childbirth specifically. Maybe the others found something."

Rick came back down the stairs for the fourth time. "Are you three gonna help or just stand there?"

Marianne pursed her lips but didn't speak. Daryl was surprised she didn't say a word to annoy Rick. What exactly had happened between the two of them? Marianne hadn't told him and, with everything else that had happened that day, he had forgotten about it.

The four of them carried all of the books upstairs in no time. The rest of the group had also begun adding their finds to the growing pile which Hershel and Marianne started picking through and sorting.

Marianne suddenly stopped what she was doing and frowned at the book in her hand. "There's a few shelves I want to look at again," she announced.

"I'll go with you," Glenn said.

"You've got ten minutes," Rick said.

Marianne shrugged. "Fine with me."

Daryl looked back and forth between Rick and Marianne. What the hell was going on?

Glenn and Marianne left for the basement. Daryl decided to check outside to see if the coast was still clear. He walked up the street, looked around at the intersection, then walked down the street and looked around there too. He saw nothing and no one.

The ten minutes were almost up when Daryl went back inside but Glenn and Marianne were still gone. Five minutes passed and then three more. Rick was looking increasingly annoyed and Daryl wondered if Marianne was doing this on purpose.

"What's taking them so long?" T-Dog asked.

There was a faint pop and then another. For a moment, the whole group seemed to freeze in place but not everyone recognized what the sound was.

Daryl, Rick, and T-Dog ran for the stairs.

* * *

 ***One year the heat in my dorm room didn't work so my favorite college roommate of all time came prepared with her contraband space heater she called Bertha. She didn't have an explanation as to why she named it and I don't know why but I couldn't resist adding it in.**

 **A/N: The beginning of this chapter was tricky and you can blame it for me not updating a couple of days earlier. I feel like someone might think Daryl is acting out of character but do remember that he basically raised Marianne so this version of Daryl will be a little different.**

 **Also, the ending was a surprise to me because it's not what I had originally planned but trust me, this version is more interesting.**

 **Any thoughts? Reactions?**


	28. Chapter 28

**A/N: Thank you for the follows and the favorites!**

 **And a thank you to Ririrozu, GraceTM86, and brandibuckeye for the reviews.**

 **Enjoy!**

Disclaimer: I do not own the Walking Dead or "I'll Fly Away"

* * *

Chapter Twenty-eight

Marianne couldn't decide which books to take. She scanned the spines, reading the titles. She grabbed one flipped through it, put it back, and grabbed another, flipped through it, put it back. She repeated this until she had a small stack of books she was satisfied with. Marianne thought the first time she went through this section, she hadn't done it justice. It bugged her too much to just leave it.

The others would be waiting. She and Glenn had been down there long enough. The ten minutes were almost up.

"Glenn. We can go," Marianne said. When Glenn didn't answer she turned on the spot and looked around, trying to find the beam from his flashlight between the shelves. He said he wasn't going far. Then she recalled she had heard a noise while she was concentrating on the books and thought Glenn had dropped one. How could she be so stupid?

With a knife now in her hand, Marianne crept to the end of the aisle. She looked left and right but didn't know which way to choose. A faint groan came from her right. It didn't sound like a walker. It was too human. Too alive.

She followed the sound and even though she didn't expect one, she acted like there was going to be a walker. The groan happened again which helped her pinpoint where it was coming from. There was an open door ahead of her and that's where she would hopefully find Glenn, but why was he in there and why was he groaning?

Marianne could think of several reasons but quickly ruled out all but one. They weren't alone down there.

She cautiously approached the door, constantly looking at the area around her. She reached the doorway and shined her flashlight inside. It was an office and Glenn was laying on the ground inside. She couldn't tell if he was conscious and he hadn't groaned again.

Her back hadn't been turned away from the rest of the library for more than thirty seconds but that had been too long. Marianne sensed someone behind her. She gripped the handle of her knife tighter and quickly turned around with her arm outstretched. Her knife connected with someone.

It all happened so fast.

"Fuck," a man said while it sounded like someone else had begun choking. She thought she saw three shadowy figures before a light blinded her and hands pushed her hard enough for her to fall backwards into the room. The door closed and she heard a key being put into the lock.

Bright balls of light danced around the dark. She closed her eyes but could still see them and only opened them again when they had subsided. Marianne sat up and looked around the room. Her flashlight had rolled beneath a desk. She checked if her gun was still with her and it was.

"Glenn? You okay?" Marianne asked in a whisper as she retrieved her flashlight.

"Marianne?"

"Don't talk so loud. One of 'em might be listening. Hold on, don't speak," Marianne said before going to the door and pressing her ear against it. She heard feverish whispering but could only make out a few words when the people on the other side raised their voices. There was 'Do it' and an angry 'No'. There was also 'Dead' and 'Shoot' and another 'No'.

Then the whispering stopped and it sounded like they were dragging something away. She had only heard two voices, a man and a woman, but she was sure there was a third person out there.

Marianne turned her attention back to Glenn. "What happened?"

"Someone came up from behind me and hit my head with something."

"Did you pass out? Or were you just dazed?" Marianne asked.

"I don't know. I might have but it's so dark down here," Glenn said.

Marianne nodded. "You wouldn't have noticed. How much does your head hurt and where?"

"The right side. And on a scale of 1-10, a five."

Marianne's brow furrowed and she sighed. "Let me check your eyes. I'm gonna shine my flashlight in them," Marianne said. She stood in front of Glenn and briefly shined light in one eye and then the other, looking at them closely. "Well, your pupils reacted so that's a good sign. Do you feel like you're gonna throw up?"

"No."

"Are you dizzy?"

"No."

"Are you sleepy?"

"No."

"As far as I can tell you don't have a concussion but I'm not a doctor," Marianne said.

"How do you know what to look for?" Glenn asked.

"Daryl's had at least one, years and years ago, and Merle's had a few but each time he refused to go to the hospital. Where's your gun?"

"They took it."

"Damn it." Marianne let out a harsh sigh. Their attackers had at least one gun and hopefully that was all. "Was the safety on?"

"Yeah," Glenn said.

"Then let's hope they're idiots that know jack shit about guns." Marianne frowned. "How many did you see?"

"More like felt." Glenn rubbed his head. "At least two."

Marianne nodded. "I think there's three. I hope that's all there is. We can take 'em."

"But we're locked in here."

"I know a way we can get out but they'd hear it."

Realization dawned on Glenn's face. "You're going to shoot the door handle? But doesn't that only work in movies and video games?"

"Then let's pretend we're in a video game for a minute or two."

"We need a plan," Glenn said.

"I've got one. We're..." Marianne had to picture it in her head. "One, two, three aisles away from where we were. So we go three aisles down to the right and can you remember how to get out from there?"

"I think so. Why?"

"Because you're gonna make a run for the stairs. You don't have a gun and I don't want to have'ta worry about you."

"I can't just leave you," Glenn said.

"Here, take my flashlight."

"But what about you?"

"I've got an extra one," Marianne said as she pulled a small flashlight out of her jacket pocket.

"Not that. What are you going to do?"

"You follow behind me about six or seven feet. I'll have my flashlight on so that'll give you some light. When I turn my flashlight off and back on, that means we're gonna separate. I'll try to stay on the path we took to the shelves. You go for the stairs and get help 'cause I don't know if they'll hear the gunshots up there. I'll cover you. Don't turn your flashlight on until you have to. It'll make you a target," Marianne said.

"But that means you're a target. I don't like this. We should both go." Glenn paused. "And Daryl will kill me if I leave you behind."

"I'm not giving you a choice and I'll handle Daryl. Anyways, they'll probably have bad aim," Marianne said to try to make Glenn feel better. It didn't seem to work.

"I still don't like it," he said.

"We're wastin' time. Do it or I'll be the one that's pissed off."

Glenn seemed to weigh the pros and cons of having which Dixon mad at him. "Fine. I'll do it."

As soon as he said that, Marianne wasted no time getting close to the door, pulling out her gun and shooting the handle once and then twice for good measure.

She quickly opened the door and left the room. Glenn followed behind like she told him to and both of them were crouched down but moving fast. They reached the aisle they had originally been in, the small stack of books still there on the ground. It was when Marianne left the cover of the shelves that the shooting started.

"Run," she said to Glenn, who hesitated for only a second before he took off.

Marianne headed in a different direction, further away from the stairs. She succeeded in drawing the gunfire away from Glenn and noticed two guns were being fired. Their aim was terrible.

She took cover behind a table and began shooting back. Now that she was stationary the bullets were getting closer to her. Marianne turned her flashlight off and a few more shots were fired before they stopped. Glenn should've made it to the stairs by now.

* * *

Rick knew the two shots could mean any number of things. There might have been one walker or more they had missed but he knew the two of them would only use their guns if they were desperate. Even worse was the thought that Glenn and Marianne had run into people. He really hoped it was only walkers and that the two of them hadn't been bit.

They were only a quarter of the way down the stairs when they heard more shots from multiple guns. This wasn't about a walker. There were people down there with Marianne and Glenn. He pushed himself harder and half way down the stairs the three men nearly collided with Glenn.

"Marianne. Help," Glenn said between breaths. Rick, Daryl, and T-Dog had only slowed down for a second but kept going. Marianne might not have the time it would take to get more information out of Glenn.

The gunfire had stopped by the time they reached the bottom of the stairs. Rick had to forcibly pull Daryl away from the door that led to the rest of the basement. The silence could either mean the attackers were dead or too injured to fight back, or Marianne was dead or too injured to shoot her gun, or there was a break in the fighting for some unknown reason. Whichever reason it was, they needed to be smart and not go in guns blazing.

Praying to God that Marianne wasn't hurt or worse, Rick formed a plan.

* * *

Marianne crawled to a different spot so the strangers would no longer know where she was hiding. She no longer knew exactly where she was in relation to the exit but she made a guess and began moving closer to where it hopefully was. The other people had also turned their flashlights off so it was pitch black. She had to feel around in front of her and go slow so she didn't bump into anything and make noise.

There was a soft tap of a chair being pushed against a table and it was far too close her liking. Had she accidently moved closer to them or had they lucked out and chose the right direction to move towards her?

She didn't want to shoot at them. It would only give away her position.

It was plain bad luck that right when she stood up a flashlight turned on and shone on her like a spotlight. Someone shot at her and Marianne could swear that she felt the bullet pass her arm only centimeters away. She fired her gun in the direction of the light and ducked down behind a desk before they could shoot at her again.

She was pinned down by the light but now that she was out of sight they didn't shoot. Different scenarios raced through her mind. Should she make the next move or should she wait for them to? She hoped Glenn had made it out. Help should've been there by now.

Darkness blurred the right edge of the circle of light before whoever was holding the flashlight moved it a little to the left. Someone was trying sneak up on her. Instead of waiting for them to reach her, Marianne holstered her gun, took out her knife, sprung up from behind the desk and tackled a man.

The element of surprise gave her the upper hand at first but the man was larger than she had expected—tall with wide shoulders and beefy arms. The gun he was holding flew out of his hand and disappeared outside the beam of light, the dark making it impossible for him to see it.

She stabbed his shoulder and he let out a grunt of pain. This didn't slow him down but made him angrier. He easily pushed her off and in a split second was on top of her.

Her right hand, which was holding the knife, was pinned down next to her side so Marianne clawed as his face with her left.

He yelled and the man's grip on her right arm loosened.

"Marianne!"

Hearing her name caused her to pause for a second which almost made her lose the opportunity to free her right arm. The left was now pinned down next to her head. The way the man was sitting on her prevented her from kneeing him.

As soon her right arm was free she stabbed the man the first place she could. The knife sunk deep into his side and while it was still in him, she pulled it towards her with all of her strength. The man cried out. She hadn't heard someone in so much pain since Frank and Will but this time she didn't smile.

Blood coated her hand and wrist. Her grip on the knife slipped as she tried to pull it out of him. The man rolled off of her of his own volition, clawing at the knife's handle.

Marianne was shaking and it took her full concentration to sit up. Her hand went to her gun and she noticed the fresh blood on her jacket. She knew the stain would never come out.

* * *

Rick and Daryl, as silently as they could, opened the door only as much as they needed to and slipped through. T-Dog was staying in the stairwell to stop anyone from trying to escape. He had momentarily turned his flashlight off so no light would betray that the door had opened and the other two men had also turned off theirs.

Both of them immediately saw the person shining a light on a desk. Rick aimed his gun and Daryl his crossbow at the unknown woman but didn't shoot. She hadn't noticed they were there and they wanted to keep it that way. They knew there was more than one attacker and Rick wanted to find out where they were first.

As soon as Rick had spotted a shadowy figure closing in on the desk, Marianne appeared and tackled it to the ground. There was a grunt and not long after a man yelled in pain.

"Marianne!" Daryl shouted.

 _Damn it Daryl._

The flashlight's beam wavered towards them but they moved away from it. The woman shot in their general direction and took cover behind a bookshelf before the two men could return fire. An agonized scream made the woman shine the light back on the desk.

Marianne appeared again, standing up and exposing herself. She had her gun pointed at the woman, who miraculously didn't fire. Rick noticed the blood on Marianne and hoped it wasn't hers.

"I don't want to kill you," Marianne said. "We can end this right now. No one else needs to get hurt."

Daryl took off to sneak up on the woman and take her down.

"You killed Mike!" The woman took a step forward, almost leaving the protection of the shelves. Rick moved closer.

"He's still alive," Marianne said in confusion as the man behind her continued to groan.

"You sliced his throat, you bitch," the woman said, her voice steeped in fear and hate.

Realization washed over Marianne's face and then it turned stony. "You hurt my friend. You were gonna attack me. What'd you expect? A tea party?"

"This isn't a joke!" The woman stepped forward again and away from the shelves giving him a clear shot. Rick moved even closer.

Four things happened in quick succession. The woman pulled the trigger, Marianne fell, Rick fired, and Daryl tackled the woman.

* * *

Marianne dropped to the ground onto her hands and knees. And then she was lying on her back staring at nothing because the light of the woman's flashlight wasn't pointed in her direction anymore.

She was next to the man she had brutally stabbed, because that's what she was now. Brutal. The man had stopped groaning and he was taking shallow, pained breaths.

"Marianne!" Rick shouted her name and then Daryl did too. And they kept shouting. They were getting closer but she couldn't answer. She couldn't do anything. She was frozen in place, the gravity of her actions pressing down on her. The man stopped breathing and she continued to stare at nothing.

She blinked and a light appeared. She could see the ceiling now. Then a shadow. Then Daryl.

"Marianne?" He kneeled next to her and looked at her desperately. His eyes scanned her to see where she was injured but he wouldn't find anything. "You hurt?"

"No," she lied, because where she was hurt didn't make her bleed.

"You okay?" Daryl asked.

"No," she said truthfully. What was the point in lying? Daryl would know. He would see if he looked hard enough, and frankly, at the moment, it wasn't hard to see.

 _Pull it together._

Daryl helped her sit up. She was shaking again and it wasn't because of the cold.

Rick came up behind Daryl. "Was she shot?"

"No. But I think she's in shock," her brother said.

Marianne ignored them and turned to look at the dead man who was staring at nothing. She took her knife out of his side, more blood spilled out, and stabbed him through the eye.

* * *

Rick watched Marianne stab the dead man's head. She didn't have to do that. Someone else could've taken care of it. Him or Daryl. Anyone but her, because she was far from okay.

She began wiping her knife off on the part of the dead man's shirt that was still clean.

"Marianne," Daryl said. She ignored him and kept cleaning. He turned to look at Rick. "The woman?"

"T-Dog's got her tied up," Rick said, glancing over at T-Dog and seeing that Glenn was now with him. They both looked at Rick, waiting for news about Marianne. He nodded, making the two of them visibly relax, and Glenn took off towards the stairs. The woman began crying but Rick would deal with her later.

He moved his focus back onto Marianne, who had stopped trying to clean the knife, which was still smeared with drying blood. She kept staring at it in her hand until Daryl reached for it and she let him take it. "I'll clean it for you," Daryl said.

"I need to get the books," Marianne said, her voice almost robotic.

In his time as an officer, Rick had seen the reactions of people after a traumatic event. Some were hysterical while others were detached. There were people who weren't capable of doing anything at all and some who wanted to keep doing the task that had been interrupted. A few of those people became obsessed with their task, grasping for control in a situation where the world seemed to be falling down around them.

"Don't worry about 'em," Daryl said.

"The books," Marianne said as she stood up, needing to rely heavily on the desk to get on her feet. "I can't leave 'em."

"Someone'll get 'em later," Daryl said, moving cautiously towards Marianne and shooting a worried look at Rick.

Marianne's brow furrowed and she shook her head. "No. _I_ need to get the books."

"Okay, but let's get ya cleaned up first. Get ya a drink of water, somethin' to eat." Daryl reached for her arm but Marianne backed away.

"No. I'm not leavin' without the goddamned books," she said with a raised voice, her cheeks beginning to flush.

"Marianne, how about you get them and we'll carry them upstairs for you?" Rick asked in a reasonable voice, trying to keep her calm. He didn't want her to get any more agitated than she already was.

She looked between the two men. "Fine," Marianne said as she took a small flashlight out of her pocket and turned it on. She shined the light around the library as if orienting herself and then took off, walking right past the crying woman without looking at her.

* * *

When she reached the small pile of books Marianne realized she couldn't pick them up. Her hand was still sticky with blood and if she touched them they would be stained forever. Couldn't they have at least one thing in this world unspoiled by blood?

Marianne sat down, suddenly bone weary. She should've listened to Daryl and cleaned up. Maybe then she'd feel better, but she really needed to get the books. That was the whole point of coming to the library. This small pile was the reason she had went back into the basement. Earlier, she couldn't let it go and look what had happened.

All of it was her fault. Her fault that Glenn was hurt. Her fault that the others had risked their lives to save her. Her fault that two men were dead.

She should be dead too. If Daryl hadn't tackled the woman, Marianne knew the bullet wouldn't have missed her. She had seen the intent to kill in the woman's eyes. Marianne saw the moment the woman had decided to pull the trigger and she had had seconds to shoot first but she hadn't because the blood was still warm and slick on her hand and she could still feel the knife entering the man's body and the resistance she had fought against as she cut into him.

In that moment, Marianne wondered if death was what she deserved. But that's not what she wanted. She wanted to live, yet she still couldn't shoot.

Another light appeared at the end of the aisle. Marianne didn't need to look up to know who it was.

"I didn't want to hurt anyone," she said, her voice betraying how drained she felt.

"I know." Daryl walked towards Marianne and sat down next to her, setting his crossbow on his lap. "This ain't like last time."

"Yeah, it's not." Marianne studied the blood caked under her fingernails. "They attacked us and I didn't have a choice." She sighed. "I'm so sick of this. I'm tired of feeling bad. I just couldn't shoot her. I hesitated and we're not supposed to do that anymore, but I did." Marianne opened and closed her right hand, the drying blood making her skin feel tight. "Don't say anything. I already know what you're gonna tell me. Can you get the books?"

Daryl nodded and stood up. "Yeah, I'll get 'em."

Marianne looked away from her red hand and up at her brother. "Thank you for saving me."

* * *

Rick and T-Dog were dragging the woman up the stairs to the first floor. She had stopped crying but now she was pleading for her life.

"It wasn't my idea. It was Jared's. He planned the attack. It was all him. I didn't want to hurt anyone."

"Yeah, right," T-Dog said, looking more pissed off than Rick had ever seen him before.

Daryl scoffed behind him but all he heard from Marianne was the sound of her boots on the concrete stairs. He wanted to turn around to see how she was doing. Instead, he tightened his grip on the woman's arm.

"I was scared. We don't know you people. We were just tryin' to protect ourselves." The woman tried to catch Rick's eye but he continued to look straight ahead. "Can you blame us? Jared was right, all of y'all are dangerous. She's covered in his blood," the woman wailed. "She killed them like it was nothin', like she doesn't have a heart."

"Shut yer fucking mouth," Daryl growled before Rick could tell the woman to shut up himself.

The woman stopped talking and Rick glanced at her. She looked terrified and Rick wasn't about to alleviate her fear. Let her suffer. She and her people had attacked his people.

They had almost lost Marianne at this woman's hands. Rick couldn't bear to think about what would've happened if Daryl hadn't reached the woman in time.

When they were on the first floor landing Rick took the woman's scarf off of her and blindfolded her with it. There was no sense in letting her see the rest of the group. The less she knew about them, the better.

This seemed to scare her even more. "Please—"

"Don't start or I'll gag you too," Rick said.

He and T-Dog kept ahold of the woman while Daryl moved past them to open the door. When the five of them were out of the stairwell, Daryl let the door close and rejoined Marianne's side. Rick looked back at her. She was staring at her hand, the blood on it dry and beginning to crack. Marianne lifted her head and looked him right in the eye.

Her face was unreadable. Although, it wasn't blank and her eyes weren't vacant, there just wasn't anything to discern. A mask had settled over her and he didn't know her well enough to know how much this should worry him. Was this a good sign or a bad one?

They rounded the corner of the short hallway the stairwell door was in and all eyes were on them.

"How—" Maggie started.

"Later." Rick signaled everyone to keep quiet but it didn't work when Marianne stepped out from behind him, T-Dog, and the woman.

"Marianne," Beth said as she ran towards the woman and collided with her, wrapping her arms tightly around her. Marianne looked startled and couldn't return the hug even if she wanted to because Beth had her arms pinned down. Maggie soon joined them and gave Marianne a hug as soon as Beth let go.

"Thank you," Maggie said and Marianne looked at her like she was crazy.

Carl was the next one to ambush Marianne with a hug. Rick couldn't help but glance over at Lori, who somehow looked simultaneously relieved and annoyed as she watched their son with Marianne. Rick had an inkling of where her displeasure was coming from. Lately Carl had been rejecting any affection Lori tried to show him and seeing Carl hug Marianne couldn't be pleasant for her.

Rick turned to T-Dog. "Stay with them. Make sure nobody else tries to sneak up on us," he said. "Daryl, you're comin' with me."

Both men nodded at Rick. Daryl, relieved of the books, took T-Dog's place.

Rick and Daryl, with the woman between them, began walking to the hallway to find a room so they could interrogate the woman away from the group. Rick noticed Marianne was following them and he stopped walking.

"Daryl, take her into a room. I'll meet you there," Rick said. Daryl looked between Marianne and Rick before nodding and pulling the woman along with him. Rick turned to Marianne. "You don't have to be there."

"I wanna hear what she has'ta say," Marianne said. It didn't look like anything could change her mind and Rick didn't have it in him at the moment to argue with her.

He nodded and began walking to the room Daryl had taken the woman, Marianne following close behind him.

They entered the room, which turned out to be a classroom, and found the woman sitting at a student desk with Daryl looming over her. When he saw Rick and Marianne he backed away from her.

"What's your name?" Rick asked, standing only a few feet away from the woman. She didn't respond.

"Answer the damn question," Daryl said roughly.

"Sara. Sara Cochran."

"You tried to kill me and my people, Sara. Why?" Rick asked. Sara set her nervous gaze on Marianne. "Don't look at her. Look at me."

Sara's eye flitted around the classroom, looking everywhere except at Rick. "I told you. It was all Jared. He said y'all were dangerous. That we had to protect ourselves."

Rick had a feeling Jared was a hotheaded alpha type, either stupid enough to think he could take on another group for any little reason or too confident in his own abilities. Maybe both but whatever it was, it had led him to his death. He had been no match for Marianne.

"So you were just along for the ride?" Daryl asked and Sara flinched like the man had hit her.

"I didn't have a choice," Sara said, now looking Rick in the eye. "Please, I was just tryin' to survive."

"By attacking people getting books in a library?" Saying that aloud made Rick inclined to think that Jared was, in fact, an idiot. "Where were you hiding?"

"In an office. Mike used to work at the library so he knew where the keys were. We locked ourselves in when we saw y'all's lights," Sara said. She was being compliant, trying to get in their good graces so they wouldn't kill her. Rick hadn't decided yet.

"Is there anyone else in your group?" Rick asked.

"No. I'm alone now." Sara licked her lips.

"You're lying." Rick rested his hand on his holstered Colt, a move that Sara noticed and tears started welling in her eyes again.

"I'm not."

"Like hell you ain't." Daryl took a threatening step towards Sara.

Rick held out his hand to keep Daryl from getting any closer to the woman. It wouldn't take much to break her. There was a long pause where Rick stared at her and Daryl glowered. Sara began to squirm.

"Three. Three more and that's it. I promise." New tears ran down Sara's face but Rick's heart wasn't moved. What did move his heart was Marianne shaking on the floor next to a man she had to kill so she wouldn't be killed.

"Where?" Rick asked.

"Over my dead body," Sara said in a trembling voice that betrayed what little conviction she had in the bold statement.

"That can be arranged." Rick grabbed his Colt, cocked it, and pointed it at Sara's head.

The woman let out a sob. "The dorms! But please don't kill them. They didn't do anything. We only came to the library because Phoebe dislocated her shoulder and we didn't know how to fix it. We thought there'd be a book that could help."

Marianne rested her hand on his right arm and gently pushed it down to tell him to lower his gun. Rick complied and turned to look at her. Her head shook minutely as she silently pleaded with her eyes and he knew Marianne didn't want him to kill Sara.

"Watch her," Rick said to Daryl as he went to the door and opened it, motioning for Marianne to follow him out of the room.

He shut the door and they were alone in the hallway. Rick waited for her to speak.

"You can't kill her," she said and after the look she had given him in the room he wasn't surprised.

"She almost killed you," Rick said.

"She was scared." Marianne looked down at the floor. "I killed her friends. You woulda done the same thing she did."

Rick nodded. She had a point but these people began this fight. "You didn't start this. They did and it's their own fault they're dead."

"I know. But I won't let you do it." She looked up at him and it felt like she was staring straight into him. "You'll kill her for me and I can't have more blood on my hands."

Marianne was right. Rick would kill Sara to protect the group but first and foremost he would be killing the woman as revenge for Marianne.

"Alright. It's your call and I'll respect that. We'll keep her tied up when we leave and let her friends find her."

Marianne took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Thank you."

* * *

There was blood on her face and Marianne couldn't figure out exactly how it had got there. When in all of the fighting had blood dripped onto her forehead, splattered on her cheek over her scar, and smeared on her chin?

Marianne looked away from the mirror and around the green and white tiled restroom. There were paper towels she could use but no water. That small detail had slipped her mind when she left to find the restroom, not sure why she needed one and thinking it must be a leftover habit from the old world. Or maybe she needed to be alone.

Maggie came into the restroom with a gallon jug of water and a hand towel. She set the water on the sink and handed Marianne the towel. Marianne was grateful it was dark blue, the blood would hardly show.

"Sorry we couldn't warm it up a little. It's a jug from inside our car so it's not as cold as it could be," Maggie said.

"Is it our drinking water?" Marianne wouldn't use it if it was.

"Nope, it's from the creek. We haven't boiled it yet. And Rick said we're goin' back to Rockwell so we'll pass the creek and fill up again so use as much as you want." Maggie's voice was kind but void of pity. Good. Marianne liked that it wasn't that delicate voice people used to talk to someone they thought was fragile and a little unhinged.

"You need anything else?" Maggie asked as Marianne wet the towel. Marianne shook her head and Maggie left her alone.

She started with her hand and wrist and the few rivulets of blood that had run down her arm at some point. At first, Marianne was wiping the blood off but that was taking too long so she began scrubbing harder and harder until her skin was red and irritated.

The blood wouldn't come out from under her fingernails and she almost screamed in frustration. She rubbed until her fingertips were raw but at least the blood was gone.

Marianne wet the towel and wringed it out to clean it. Pink water went into the sink and down the drain but a few pink drops were leftover which mesmerized her and when she finally broke her gaze away it went the mirror in front of her.

This time her stomach turned when she saw her face and she quickly looked away, taking deep breaths to keep from throwing up her meager breakfast.

She went to the restroom door, opened it, and called out for Maggie. The younger woman appeared in a flash.

"You need something?" Maggie asked.

Marianne held out the damp towel to her. "My face in the mirror. I can't look."

Maggie nodded in understanding and took the towel. "Alright, I can help with that."

They went to the sink where the two-thirds empty jug of water was. Marianne stood with her back to the mirror while Maggie poured more water onto the towel.

Maggie turned towards her with a smile and began to gently rub the blood off of her forehead. Some of the water dripped down her nose and Marianne closed her eyes before any could get into them.

"Why did you thank me?" Marianne asked.

"Glenn told me what you did for him."

Marianne went to shake her head but stopped because Maggie had begun cleaning her cheek. She kept her eyes closed because it was easier to talk that way. "I was bein' practical. He didn't have a gun and I think he's faster than me. We needed help."

"You drew the gunfire away from him. As far as I'm concerned you saved him," Maggie said.

"You don't know that. Maybe he wouldn't even have been shot if they were aiming for him. Or if we waited for y'all to come down because we were takin' too long, we wouldn't've been in the line of fire," Marianne argued. She hadn't saved anyone except maybe herself and that had involved making two men needing to be saved from her.

"You need to start takin' credit for all the good things you do," Maggie said and Marianne couldn't answer because Maggie had moved onto her chin. Even if she could have, she didn't know what to say.

When Marianne's skin was clear of blood, the two women left the restroom and rejoined the group. Marianne could see through the open door that the vehicles had been moved out of their hiding place and parked in the street. She also noticed that the books in the keep pile were gone.

Sara was nowhere to be seen but she didn't care. She trusted that Rick wouldn't kill her so Marianne didn't need proof that the woman was still alive.

They were ready to leave and everyone exited the building except for T-Dog and Daryl. By the time Marianne got into the passenger seat of her truck and buckled her seatbelt, the two men were leaving the building and shut the door behind them

T-Dog got into the truck but it looked like Beth had switched to the hatchback. Marianne silently thanked whoever's idea that was.

"You okay?" T-Dog asked as he started the truck.

"No, not really," Marianne said.

T-Dog didn't speak after that and Marianne tried to keep her mind off of everything by looking out of the window but it didn't work and her mind wandered. She needed to find a different distraction.

"You went to church, right?" Marianne asked.

"Every Sunday."

"Can you sing somethin'?"

There was a silence so long Marianne thought T-Dog wasn't going to but then he started to sing. Marianne didn't recognize the song but she hadn't expected to. T-Dog had a good voice, was in fact a great singer and she would've smiled under different circumstances.

She leaned her head against the cold window and ignored the chill it gave her. Two verses in she closed her eyes, blocking out the world and focusing on T-Dog's low timbre.

 _When the shadows of this life have gone,_

 _I'll fly away_

 _Like a bird from prison bars has flown,_

 _I'll fly away_

Marianne held her breath, trying to fight away the grief that enveloped her. Her eyes burned and her throat was closing up. She couldn't hold it back anymore.

Tears streamed down her face that she didn't bother to wipe away. She hated how much she had cried in the past few months but right now she couldn't stop herself. Marianne had lost control and for a few moments she couldn't make out any of the words T-Dog was singing.

 _Just a few more weary days and then,_

 _I'll fly away_

 _To a land where joy shall never end,_

 _I'll fly away_

Her whole body was heaving and she was gasping for air. She needed something to hold onto so she grasped the seatbelt strap crossing her chest. It barely helped but then she felt a hand on her shoulder. It didn't leave until her breathing steadied. Marianne opened her eyes and straightened in her seat but was too embarrassed to look at T-Dog.

"I didn't think my singing was that bad," he said.

Marianne choked out a laugh and the tension she was feeling eased a little but something darker gripped her tighter.

They were halfway back to Rockwell when a calm washed over her because Marianne had figured it out. She had to accept herself. She was a monster and monsters made it in this world. They survived, so she would too and she'd do anything she could to keep her people alive.

Anything.

* * *

 **A/N: Half of this chapter basically wrote itself in less than four hours but then the other half was playing hide and seek for over a week. Did you enjoy the action? I tried to make it as not confusing as I could. Writing about flashlights without calling them flashlights every single time was an interesting exercise.**

 **What do you think about Marianne's big epiphany? It's something I've had planned for awhile now.**

 **On a different note, because I can't help myself, I have an idea for a Strong Enough AU. I wasn't even thinking about Strong Enough when it came into my head and the next thing I knew I had the first chapter finished. The premise is that when Marianne's mom dies she goes into the foster care system and is eventually adopted by Hershel. The first time she and Daryl meet is when the group comes to the farm. I know it's a little far fetched and coincidental but so was Rick finding Lori and Carl and we all went along with that and I did so happily.**

 **I'll set up a poll and it'd be awesome if you let me know if you're interested or not. I will say that Strong Enough is my first priority and that this AU won't take writing time away from it. In fact, when I was stuck on this chapter I wrote the AU's first chapter and it helped clear my head and get the ball rolling again for chapter 28. With that said, it means that new chapters for it will most likely be slow to come and if I do end up doing it I can't promise that it'll be posted anytime soon. If you have any questions or comments about it just shoot me a message. My inbox is open.**


	29. Chapter 29

**A/N: I'm sorry for the long wait. I just got really discouraged and fell into a deep slump. I ended up posting the AU in an attempt to get me inspired again even though only two people voted in the poll but it's there if you're interested. It sort of worked but I'm still feeling pretty down about this story.**

 **So enough whining! Thank you to** **brandibuckeye and Shockra for the reviews. They're greatly appreciated. Thank you for the follows and the favorites. This story reached over 100 follows and I wish I had a longer chapter for you as a celebration. Maybe next chapter.**

* * *

It was still dark outside when Daryl woke up but that wouldn't last long. For once he hadn't had night watch and managed to sleep for more than three or four hours at a time. He sat up from his spot on the edge of the sleeping area, the furthest one away from the fireplace, and looked over at Marianne, who was one of the closest. He was relieved to see that she was already awake, quietly adding wood to the fire and coaxing the flames to grow stronger. The orange glow from the fire hid the dark circles under her eyes that now seemed a permanent part of her face and Daryl was sure that he had a matching set.

He stood, not making a sound but somehow his sister knew he was up because she turned around and gave him a small wave of good morning before returning to her task. Daryl stretched. So far, so good. She wasn't acting strange yet.

It was the second day since the library and Marianne had been acting normal which worried Daryl because this particular brand of normal wasn't Marianne.

Their first night in Rockwell Marianne had been subdued, staring into the fire while absentmindedly eating her share of peas and carrots. She paid little attention to everyone and everything going on around her and the group had let her be. She had been the first to fall asleep which was highly unusual for her but understandable after the events of that day.

The next morning she was the last to rise which in and of itself wasn't necessarily something to worry about but the smile on her face and her bright eyes as she greeted him that morning had taken him by surprise and not in a good way. He had watched her like a hawk that day, wishing he could be happy that she was okay but his suspicions that something was very wrong grew by the hour and this morning it hadn't changed.

She was standing different, walking different, talking different and nobody but him seemed to notice. Maybe the transformation was too subtle for anyone else to see but he wished someone would or soon he'd think it was all in his head. Maybe he was imagining it and today would prove him wrong.

Daryl went about his short morning routine. The hunger he felt in the early hours had dulled considerably since fleeing the farm so he tended to other things, letting whoever was in charge of breakfast that day to force a fruit cup into his hands.

He briefly left the room to change into a dirtier set of clothing, having taken up the habit of sleeping in the clothes covered in the least amount of blood which was a compromise from having a set of sleepwear that most of them wore. Marianne and Rick did the same thing, both wanting to be as ready as possible to leave and fight if they had to, when wearing sweatpants just seemed plain stupid.

When he returned to the den Marianne was gone and he assumed she was getting ready too. Yesterday, doing the chores required for settling in for a stay longer than a day had eaten up most of their time and while Marianne stayed behind for her turn on watch, Daryl had only been able to roam the immediate area for two hours, killing three pitifully small squirrels. Today both of them would go hunting and scout out the area.

Someone came up behind him and he automatically tensed up until he felt fingers drum against his shoulder. It was Marianne's way of letting him know she was there or needed to draw his attention when they couldn't talk during a hunt. He turned around to see her already fully kitted out and holding up his breakfast for him to take, which was, as predicted, a fruit cup. Marianne hadn't bother to bring him a spoon which was fine with him because Daryl wouldn't have used it.

All he had left to do was to grab his crossbow, check that his gun was ready to go, and grab a couple of more knives. In less than a minute he met Marianne, who hadn't bothered to wait inside, on the front porch. Rick was on watch but she was alone which meant he was checking the perimeter. Daryl had wanted to give Rick an estimate of how long they'd be out but he didn't feel like waiting for the other man to return.

"How does west sound?" Marianne asked, her attention focused on the sky which was starting to lighten.

Daryl shrugged. "As good as any other direction."

Marianne gave a decisive nod and both of them left the porch, heading straight for the trees.

In the light of early dawn, his eyes were drawn by the blood on her denim jacket. They still hadn't found anything heavier than a hoodie and hopefully when they finished going through the houses on the street they were staying on someone would find a suitable replacement.

Marianne caught him looking at her jacket but didn't seem perturbed. In fact, the smile he knew appeared, not the one she had been using yesterday.

"It's nice to be out again," Marianne said. It had been about a week since the last time she went hunting, too long considering she had been out of commission for about two months after she had found them and he didn't know how long she'd been bedridden when she had been alone. Marianne had a lot of time to make up for.

Marianne walked ahead of him and Daryl studied her more than the woods around them, waiting for something—anything—to indicate what she was really feeling. Under normal circumstances Daryl would know or at least have a clue but the things she had gone through he never would have imagined and he had no starting point to guide him in interpreting her unexpected reaction.

After being attacked and killing two men he thought she would be upset and had planned how he would comfort her. He was sure he had it figured out until she woke up the morning after and smiled, making him scrap his plans and scramble to make new ones but he came up empty.

The day started with the group tentatively feeling out Marianne's wellbeing and every indication his sister gave was that she was doing okay, subtly projecting that she was still shaken but determined to move on. Thinking about it now, he realized her act had been masterful and it was a little unnerving how well she had pulled it off, but not well enough to fool him.

They settled into their usual routine when hunting together but every once in a while, Daryl would take a peek at Marianne.

"Take a picture. It'll last longer," Marianne said after his latest furtive glance. It surprised him. He hadn't realized she had noticed that he kept looking at her.

Daryl grunted. "Lookin' out for walkers, not lookin' at you."

"Sure you are," Marianne said but she left it at that and they continued on in silence.

Their persistence paid off when a rabbit appeared out from underneath a bush that had nearly lost all of its leaves.

Daryl, his crossbow already loaded, aimed it at the brown rabbit and his finger was on the trigger when a hawk swooped down, grabbed the rabbit, and flew away. For a few seconds he stared at the spot where the rabbit was supposed to be, not quite believing what had just happened but he quickly collected himself and swore.

"That bastard stole our rabbit," Daryl said. This had never happened to him before. Here he was concerned about walkers when he should have been paying attention to the sky.

Marianne's shoulders were shaking with silent laughter as she motioned for him to follow her. She went in the direction the hawk had flown and he readily followed her. The least they could do was try to find the thieving bird.

Seeing that Marianne was keeping her eyes on the trees, Daryl decided to keep his on the ground in case they flushed out another rabbit but his hopes weren't high. It felt like the temperature was in the low fifties and most of them would be keeping warm in their burrows.

They hadn't gone very far when Marianne stopped and pointed at a birch tree bare of its leaves. The hawk was sitting on a thick branch tearing into their rabbit with its beak.

Marianne nocked an arrow and began to take aim. As if the hawk knew of its impending death, it looked at them and then spread its wings to take off. Before it could take flight an arrow pierced its breast and it fell forward off of the branch onto the ground where it weakly flapped its wings a few times before it died, still clutching the rabbit.

"Shame. It was a handsome bird. Red-tailed hawk I think," Marianne said.

"He got what he deserved." Daryl picked the hawk up and pulled the arrow out of it.

"Please don't tell me you're holdin' a grudge against a dead bird," Marianne said, accepting her arrow back from him.

Daryl handed her the hawk and picked up the rabbit, inspecting the damage done to it. "So what? I bet you hold one for that tree you fell out of."

"Point taken. But I would like to add that it was a completely different situation."

Daryl snorted. "Sure it was."

They came upon two squirrels in the next half hour and a third appeared closer to Marianne than him. It was her shot and he waited but nothing happened.

The squirrel was about to disappear behind the tree so Daryl fired a bolt and hit the squirrel, and then he turned around to see why Marianne hadn't. It was hers to kill and she only let him kill an animal she had spotted if he had a clearer shot than her or if it was bigger game that they'd both try to take down.

He found Marianne leaning against a tree with blue lips and eyes closed. Her bow was hanging lethargically at her side. He had focused so much on their surroundings he hadn't noticed how cold she was.

"Marianne," he said as he walked towards her.

"Mmhmm."

Her lack of response worried him. When he reached her, he took her hand. It was freezing but she had stopped shivering. Daryl knew this couldn't be a good sign. He let go of her hand. "Put your gloves on."

Marianne opened her eyes and took off her backpack. It took her a few tries to grasp the zipper and unzip the front pocket to retrieve her bulky gloves. She struggled to put them on and Daryl had to help her.

"We're goin' back," Daryl said as he put her backpack on.

"No, I'm fine," Marianne said looking so far from fine his chest tightened with worry.

"You ain't."

"But—"

"No arguin'," Daryl said in a sharp voice he didn't think he'd ever used on her before. If he did, he couldn't remember when or why.

Marianne stumbled most of the way back to the house, having to rely on Daryl to keep her steady. When they stepped out of the woods and into the yard of the house they were staying at Daryl felt relieved, but only a little bit. Marianne wasn't better yet and he hoped that this could be remedied quickly.

T-Dog was on watch and Daryl called out to him. The other man sprung into action and jogged over to them.

"Is she hurt?" T-Dog asked.

"She's too cold. Take this." Daryl handed his crossbow over and picked up Marianne so he could carry her into the house faster than she could walk.

"Hershel!" Daryl yelled as soon as they were in the house and the man quickly appeared along with Rick, Glenn, and Maggie.

Hershel may be a veterinarian but to his credit, he took one look at Marianne and knew exactly what was wrong.

"Bring her to the fire," Hershel said and Daryl followed the man into the den where they were camped out.

Daryl rushed to the room and the couch was pushed closer to the fireplace by Rick before he set Marianne on it.

"We need to get her out of those clothes," Hershel said.

Everyone except Hershel, Carol, and Daryl cleared the room to give Marianne some privacy as Carol stripped her of her clothing and dressed her in warmer ones. Daryl and Hershel turned their backs on them for the process.

As soon as she was dressed, they cocooned her in as many blankets as they could but Daryl felt like they weren't doing enough.

"Carol, warm up some water. Don't let it get too hot," Hershel said.

Daryl barely noticed as Carol took the soup out of the fireplace and replaced it with a pot of their drinking water.

Hershel had Marianne take slow sips of the warmed-up water and Daryl stood beside the couch biting his thumb. As soon as he could he sat next to Marianne and she leaned against him. She had started to shiver again which Hershel assured him was a good sign. All that was left to do was to wait.

* * *

"You've always had trouble with the cold but not like this," Daryl said.

"It may be her diet. Poor nutrition and possible anemia," Hershel said.

"You mean she's not gettin' enough to eat," Daryl said.

"No one is," Marianne said.

"Your body trying to warm itself up burns calories, more than you're taking in, which means you're losing body fat that would help you stay warm."

Marianne sighed. "So what are we gonna do?"

"You need to stay inside when the temperature drops too low," Hershel said. "I think you'll be fine in the 60s but anything below that you shouldn't be out."

Marianne nodded and Hershel left, giving the siblings as much privacy as he could in a room full of people.

"I'm sorry Daryl." Marianne looked away from him and into the fire. "I should've said something before it got so bad. But I kept thinkin' about Lori and the baby and Carl."

A small surge of anger rose up in him. She almost died because she was taking care of other people. She risked her life for the group and he hated it. Did they even appreciate what she does for them?

Daryl didn't want Marianne to think he was mad with her so he contained it before it got out of hand. "It's alright. Hypothermia confuses ya, or so I've heard. Makes you make bad decisions."

"If you're tryin' to make me feel better, it's workin' just a little. I still feel stupid though." She leaned back on the couch. "You should go back out."

"No, I'm stayin' here with you," Daryl said.

Marianne shook her head. "We need the meat. And I'll be okay. I promise I won't go outside."

Daryl triple-checked that Marianne was warm and feeling fine before he reluctantly left to go hunting. She was right, they needed the food and more importantly Marianne needed to eat. He refused to let her waste away.

* * *

A few days of low temperatures passed, meaning Marianne was stuck inside and beholden to the fireplace. She was reading a mystery novel without much enjoyment when Glenn and Maggie returned from their run. She glanced at them briefly and saw their triumphant smiles. She turned back to her book, not in any hurry to see what they had found because she'd be inventorying it later along with Beth and Maggie.

"We've got something for you," Glenn said, making Marianne look back up at him. He looked very proud as he set his duffel bag on the coffee table.

"What?" Marianne asked suspiciously, wondering if this was going to be a joke. If it was, hopefully it'd be funny.

"I think you'll like it," Maggie said, coming to stand next to Glenn. She sounded genuine enough which peaked Marianne's interest.

Glenn purposely blocked Marianne's view of the duffel bag as he unzipped it and pulled something out of it.

"Stop being so dramatic," Marianne said.

"It's called anticipation," Glenn said, but he turned around to reveal what he was holding up.

A grin broke out on Marianne's face. In front of her was a brown leather Sherpa jacket. She was still wearing her bloodstained denim jacket, which she quickly took off and let fall to the ground.

Glenn handed her the new jacket and Marianne put it on.

"Good, it fits," Maggie said.

"It's perfect," Marianne said with a smile she couldn't stop. "Thank you, both of you."

"Don't thank me," Maggie said. "Glenn found it packed away in an attic. I told him he was crazy to go up there."

Glenn shrugged. "We've been looking for a new jacket for you and I figured, since it was summer when everything happened, winter clothes would be packed away. Oh, we found some other stuff too."

He took a few more things out of the bag and laid them out on the coffee table. There was a long sleeve thermal undershirt, a pair of black gloves, and a brown knit hat. Marianne looked at all of it in awe. Aside from Daryl, no one had given her anything before.

Marianne gave Glenn a quick hug and when she pulled away he was the one that looked in awe, making Maggie laugh. Marianne, still smiling, grabbed the gloves and put them on. She flexed her hands and found that the gloves were stretchy enough that she might be able to shoot her bow with them on. Then she swapped her grey knit hat for the brown one.

Maggie pointed at it. "I thought it'd look better with your jacket than the one you have."

"The world may have gone to shit but at least I look good," Marianne joked, giving Maggie a smile and a short hug to show her appreciation of her thoughtfulness. "Find anything else good?" Marianne asked.

"Toiletries. Extra clothes in case anyone wants to change," Maggie said and Marianne nodded. It had been cold enough to deter the group from doing laundry since it now took longer for the clothes to dry and they never knew when they'd have to move. "We snagged some dry shampoo too."

"I call dibs on usin' it first," Marianne said.

"Too late, I already did." Maggie said. "Right Glenn?"

"I'm staying out of this," Glenn said with his hands raised as if he was surrendering.

"Where is it?" Marianne asked Glenn and he pointed to his duffel bag. The two women looked at each other and then both dived to grab the duffel bag. Marianne was faster. She turned around and launched herself over the couch with the bag.

"Hey! No fair," Maggie said playfully as she opted to skirt around the couch instead of going over it. This gave Marianne enough time to start dumping the bag of its contents but the thing she wanted rolled across the floor and under the desk before she could stop it.

Maggie didn't know that it had rolled away so Marianne dropped the bag and quickly backed away from the stuff. When Maggie's back was turned she went for the desk, knocking the rolling chair aside and as soon as she closed her hand around it she felt a hand grab her leg and pull. Marianne squealed in surprise, a noise she didn't think she'd ever made before.

She let Maggie pull her out all the way before twisting her whole body to loosen the other woman's grip on her. It worked and she freed her leg but before she could try to get up, Maggie was nearly on top of her reaching for the dry shampoo. She kept it as far away from Maggie as she could, stretching her arm to the limit.

Marianne hooked her right leg around Maggie's waist and rolled both of them over so she was now on top. She scrambled to her feet and made a run for it with the dry shampoo in hand.

Marianne was planning to run out of the den and into a bathroom to lock herself in but instead she collided with Rick who had just appeared in the doorway seconds before she was going to go through it.

Rick grunted and stumbled back into someone while Marianne fell backwards onto the ground, but still stubbornly holding onto the dry shampoo.

"What the hell?" Daryl grumbled as he steadied Rick and looked around the man to find his sister on the floor and Maggie standing over her.

The two women burst out laughing and the looks on Rick and Daryl's faces made them laugh even harder.

"Ow, my ass," Marianne said as she stood up.

"What's going on here?" Rick asked everyone in the room other than the two brunettes. They were all smiling and some of them were laughing too.

"They really want clean hair," Glenn said. From Rick's expression this answer hadn't cleared anything up.

"They're fighting over dry shampoo," Carol answered more helpfully, amusement lacing her voice.

Rick looked between them both with astonishment and then gave them a stern look. Maggie and Marianne, who had managed to quiet their laughter, glanced at each other and started up again.

"I'm sorry officer," Marianne said between laughs. "Are we disturbing the peace?"

The corner of Rick's mouth twitched.

Marianne moved her gaze to Daryl and the look on his face made her laughter die down a little. What was his problem?

Rick offered his help to her to stand up, which was unnecessary but Marianne accepted it anyways.

Not long after, Marianne, Beth, and Maggie settled down to inventory everything that had been scavenged that day. Floor space had been cleared on the same side of the room as the fireplace and the three of them sat in a semi-circle with an empty space in front of them ready to be filled with the contents of the bags beside them.

They had unpacked all of the canned food and Marianne was tallying how many cans of green beans they had when Daryl walked up to them.

"Marianne, we got some squirrels to gut," he said gruffly.

She wasn't really in the mood for that nor did she like his tone and plus, she was already doing something. There were other people around. "Ask Rick."

"Rick's busy."

Marianne huffed. Rick was always busy. "Ask T-Dog."

"He's on watch."

"Glenn?" She asked.

"Not after last time," Daryl said and she had to admit he had a point.

"What about Carol?" Carol had recently learned how to gut squirrels and she needed more practice.

"Marianne." He sounded exasperated.

"Well, if you insist."

"I do."

"Fine." She drew out the word fully intending to sound like she was grumbling.

Marianne followed him with a sigh, suspecting that he wanted to talk in private because he didn't actually need help skinning squirrels.

They went into the kitchen and Marianne was happy to see six squirrels on the counter. They weren't fat but they weren't starved either. It still wasn't enough to feed all of them but it was better than the three squirrels Daryl had returned with yesterday.

Both of them got down to it and Marianne hadn't even finished her first squirrel when Daryl spoke.

"What's goin' on with you?" He asked, getting straight to the point and not pussyfooting around it.

"Nothin'." She shrugged.

"Yer actin' weird."

"I had a laugh so now I'm being weird?" Marianne put her hands on her hips, getting blood on her clothes. "I'm happy. What's so wrong with that?"

"But you ain't happy," he said, adamant in his belief.

"You can't tell me what I am or am not feeling Daryl."

"After what happened—"

"What? I kill two men in self-defense—which you told me to be okay with—and that means I can't be in a good mood? Would'ya rather I fall apart?"

"No, I want you to be okay with it but you're not being you," he said.

 _But I'm being the new me._ "People change."

Daryl shook his head. "Not like this. Not overnight."

"Why can't you just be happy for me?" Marianne asked. Why couldn't he just leave her alone? He was making the situation more difficult than it had to be. Plain and simple, the old Marianne was gone.

"I wanna be but this ain't normal and I think you know it too."

Marianne snorted. "Are you my shrink now?"

"No, but I wanna help." The plea in his voice was a stab to her heart.

"There's nothin' to help," she said. And it was true. Marianne was certain she was beyond help. Things had gone too far to go back to how she used to be.

 _I'm a lost cause._

"Marianne—"

"Stop. If this is all you gotta to say to me, save your breath and leave me alone." She put the knife and squirrel down. "I'm done here."

As she walked away from her worried brother who loved her more than anything in the world and only wanted to protect her, Marianne felt sick to her stomach.

* * *

 **A/N: Any thoughts? Reactions? I'd love to hear from you.**


	30. Chapter 30

**A/N: Thank you to** **lizzydahia1, brandibuckeye, Lady-Finwe, and Guest for the reviews. They are greatly appreciated. And thank you for the follows and the favorites.**

 **I'm sorry for the short chapter especially with how long you've been waiting for it. I'm still struggling but someone messaged me a few days ago asking me when it would come out and it gave me the push I needed to write this at least.**

I do not own the Walking Dead.

* * *

Chapter Thirty

It was the ninth day in Rockwell and there seemed to be no end in sight to the length of their stay. Rick remained quiet on the matter and unanimously, the group was content to remain in place.

Marianne knew with certainty that it was December and Christmas was coming but no one spoke of it and it was never hinted at. Survival appeared to have squashed the festivity out of them all but Marianne couldn't help but think of Carl and how he at least deserved to choose whether or not to celebrate. If he wanted to, she knew it would be a hit or miss on boosting morale, either going very right or very wrong.

Not long after she had decided to talk to Carl about it she came upon an opportunity to do so. It was late morning and only the two of them were playing a game of Go-fish. They were close to the fire and the flames glinted off the glossy surface of the cards.

"Got any nines?" Carl asked, looking at his cards with a furrowed brow.

"Go fish," Marianne said and the young boy groaned, picking up a card. From the look on his face it was one he needed. "Carl, do you want a Christmas?" Marianne asked in a low whisper.

"I'm not a kid anymore," he whispered back, following her lead.

"Well, you kinda are but I know what you mean." Marianne waited for Carl to speak but he didn't. "It's okay if you want to have Christmas."

"I don't. What's the point?"

"The point is that you get to do something normal for a change. You need normal every once in awhile."

"I don't want a Christmas. Come on, let's play."

Marianne sighed. Maybe it hadn't been such a good idea to ask him after all. "Do you have any fives?"

After lunch, which only Lori and Carl had, everyone scattered to do whatever needed to be done or have a little downtime. Marianne was cleaning her bow with Carl sitting near her reading a comic book.

Marianne glanced up briefly as Lori entered the room but turned her focus back on her task. No more than a minute must have passed before she registered Lori coming towards her. She looked up again, making eye contact with an angry woman.

"I need to talk to you," Lori said with a barely suppressed temper.

"We can talk," Marianne said, knowing that a fight was a sure thing and only having some reservations about arguing with a pregnant woman but she wasn't the one starting it. She put aside her bow and stood up to face Lori.

The atmosphere shifted in the room, the tension rising, and from the corner of her eye Marianne noticed Beth usher Carl out of the room. The boy looked worried but curious and for some reason, a little guilty.

Marianne took a brief glance around the room. Rick and Daryl were absent, as was T-Dog and Hershel. Carol was at the fireplace like always. Maggie and Glenn were sitting on the couch keeping each other warm and making a point to not look at her and Lori.

Her gaze fell back on Lori who now had her hands on her hips, making her growing stomach more pronounced. Marianne suspected this was about Carl but she wasn't sure what had set the mother off.

"He's _my_ son," Lori started. "It's not your place."

"My place to what?" Marianne asked genuinely confused.

"Don't act like you don't know what you did."

"But I don't," she said. The answer pissed Lori off even more but it was the truth.

The other woman scoffed. "You're not his mother. I am and you had no right to discuss Christmas with him."

Marianne let out a short laugh which was a bad idea but she couldn't help it. "That's why you're so mad? Because I asked him if he wanted Christmas?"

"I'm the one that should be talking to him about it."

"Well you weren't and it's almost here. I just want him to have somethin' to look forward to." Marianne wondered how she could calm Lori down. "I care about him."

"Oh, so you think I don't care?" Lori's face turned red, reacting the exact opposite of what Marianne wanted.

"You know that's not what I said. You want a fight? Push all you want, yer not gettin' one from me." Marianne headed to the door, stepping around Lori. It seemed the only way to get this to stop was to physically remove herself from the situation.

"You can't walk away from this! You need to stop trying to steal him."

Marianne turned around to look at Lori. "I'm not trying to steal Carl. Hell, I don't even want my own kid let alone someone else's."

"You already have Rick. You can't have Carl too."

What the hell was she talking about? Rick? She didn't have him, whatever that meant. Marianne wanted to ask what it meant but Lori wouldn't give her an answer. She'd just yell more nonsense. "What? Lori, this is ridiculous."

Lori moved fast, picking up a small vase with fake tulips in it and throwing it with what looked like as much force as she could. It hurtled through the air and Marianne dodged it, moving just in time to not get hit in the head. The sound of shattered glass against the wall was louder than Marianne expected and she flinched.

"What's going on in here?"

She saw Lori's eyes go wide and Marianne turned around to see Rick standing in the doorway, a huge frown on his face.

"I—Rick, I didn't mean to," Lori stuttered.

"It's fine," Marianne said, feeling sorry for Lori. Her relationship with Rick was already strained and this could only hurt it more.

Rick's gaze flicked towards Marianne then back to Lori. "Whatever this is, it's not fine."

"It's nothin'." Marianne shrugged. "Don't worry about it."

Daryl appeared from behind Rick and looked at the shards of glass on the floor which he gestured towards. "That ain't nothin'."

"It's just a broken ugly ass vase that nobody's gonna miss." Marianne put a warning in her voice to stop Daryl from pushing the matter and getting upset about it. From the look on his face he heard loud and clear but he wasn't about to let it go.

Daryl glowered and was about to say something but Rick beat him to it. "Lori, we need to talk. Now."

Lori winced at Rick's cop voice and her cheeks flushed even more. She nodded weakly and followed Rick, who didn't check to see if she did, out of the room. Marianne watched them go in favor of looking at anyone else and having to deal with their reactions. She couldn't help but feel bad for Lori.

When the married couple exited the room, Daryl stalked towards her. "She attacked you and yer gonna defend her?"

Marianne held up her hand. "Don't start. I just wanna finish cleanin' my bow in peace and quiet."

"Are you at least gonna tell me what happened?" He asked.

"She freaked out. End of story."

Daryl huffed. "Anyone gonna tell me what happened?" He looked around the room. "Glenn?"

The other man looked alarmed. "Why me?"

"Because he thinks he can scare it out of you," Marianne said.

"No, 'cause I think he'll pussyfoot around the truth the least of all y'all."

Marianne glared at Daryl. "You don't have to say a thing Glenn."

"He should know." Glenn said. "He's your brother."

Maggie and Carol agreed and it was Marianne's turn to huff. "Fine."

"Lori thinks Marianne's trying to steal Carl," Glenn said.

This threw Daryl and he looked like he was trying to wrap his head around it. "She's crazy."

"Don't call her that. She's pregnant and stressed out," Marianne said.

"Don't make excuses for her," Daryl said. "She's a grown ass woman."

"She had no reason to do it," Carol spoke up. "You've done nothing wrong."

Marianne had a feeling that Carol wasn't only talking about her relationship with Carl but with Rick too. She thanked her lucky stars no one brought up that particular detail.

Hopefully Lori wouldn't mention it to Rick either. She had no clue how Daryl or Rick would react and she didn't want to find out.

* * *

Rick didn't know what had gotten into Lori. He knew from her pregnancy with Carl that she could have massive mood swings but she'd never turned violent. Maybe it was the stress of running and being on the edge of barely scraping by until these past few days. He thought Rockwell had been good for them. The neighborhood was untouched and scavenging proved lucrative.

Still, this was no excuse to try to hurt one of their own.

He led her to the furthest room away from everyone, especially Carl. Thank God his son hadn't witnessed what his mother had tried to do.

They entered a bedroom and Rick firmly shut the door behind them.

"What the hell Lori?" He tried to reign in the anger in his voice. "You could've knocked her out."

"I'm so sorry," Lori said, sounding sincere. "I don't know what happened."

"That's not good enough." Rick ran a hand through his hair. "What's wrong with you?" As soon as he said it he knew he'd made a mistake, a poor choice of words.

Lori's anger returned and she straightened out of her slump. "Why do you think something's wrong with _me_? It's her. She's taking Carl away from me."

This made Rick pause. He knew Lori was worried that Carl was pulling away from her but he had no clue she thought Marianne was part of the problem. If anyone was partly to blame, it was him. He knew Carl picked up on his feelings towards Lori, that something was wrong between his parents.

"She's not stealing him. God forbid she shows that she cares for Carl," Rick said. "He needs all the people he can get to look after him because I can't protect him alone." It pained him to say it, to admit that he needed help protecting his own son no matter how much he wanted to pretend he could do it alone but he wouldn't let his pride get in the way, not when it concerned Carl's life.

"You don't see everything that goes on, Rick." Lori's voice was getting louder with each word. "She's acting like his mother."

"She's his friend and that's all." He didn't see it any other way and wracked his brain to come up with any instance when Marianne treated Carl like a son or when Carl treated Marianne like his mom but he came up with nothing. If anything, they were brother and sister.

"You don't understand!"

"I understand plenty. You need to stay away from her and you need to get over this. Acting like you are is a danger to the group. We need to stay united. We survive together." Rick was about to leave the room but he stopped. "I'll forgive you this once but if you try to hurt her again, I don't think I can forgive you a second time."

* * *

Upset with Marianne's attitude on the incident, Daryl left the house muttering about scouting further north. She watched him go with a little reservation. She understood why he was upset and she herself was confused at her relatively tame reaction towards Lori. It had to be because of Carl. She didn't want him to hate Lori and fighting with her would only push him further away from his mom, who he needed more than he realized.

Right when she was expecting it, Daryl returned but she knew something wasn't right in the way that he walked. Something was urgent.

"We need to bounce," he announced to the room. "There's a farm nearby with people."

Marianne's heart dropped. They were doing so well here. She already felt it was too good to be true but she didn't like being proved right.

"How close?" Rick asked, immediately going into full-on leader mode.

"Too close."

"How many are there?" Hershel asked.

"They match our number, more or less," Daryl answered.

"Pack up," Rick ordered. "We're moving out."

"Where are we going to go?" Carol wrung her hands. "It's already starting to get dark."

Carol had good reason to be worried. Traveling in the dark was dangerous. Their car lights could attract walkers or other people and a myriad of other things could go wrong because they were out during the night.

"We'll go east," Rick said in such a definitive way that he must already have their next move planned and of course he did. He wouldn't be Rick if he hadn't thought ahead. "Travel as far as we can away from here and camp out. We've done it before, we can do it again."

An idea occurred to Marianne and she couldn't help herself from mentioning it. "What about north? Me and Daryl know our way around up there."

"The mountains?" T-Dog sounded skeptical.

"I'm guessing walkers'll have a tough time up there, getting around," Hershel said.

"So will we," Rick said.

Marianne knew her idea was going to get shot down but she had to try. "Not with us." She pointed to herself and Daryl.

Rick shook his head but at least he didn't look annoyed at her suggestion. "We'll go east and see what happens after that. Augusta is nearby and we should try to check it out."

Marianne didn't push the matter anymore. Traveling north would have been nice. Seeing familiar places would've been a little comforting but maybe it was all for the best. She didn't think she deserved the comfort anyways. Yes, it was for the best.

* * *

 **A/N: So what do you think? I hope it was better than nothing and that it didn't disappoint.**

 **As a side note, I'm not hating on Lori and she's not a villain in this story. People make mistakes.**

 **We're getting closer and closer to season 3. I'm trying to do longer time jumps to speed things up. We'll get to January in the next chapter.**


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